


bound

by Colorful_World



Category: SHINee
Genre: M/M, Slavery, implied!Jinki/Jongin, kingdom - Freeform, past!Jinki/Taemin, side!Eunsook/Gwiboon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-15
Updated: 2016-12-15
Packaged: 2018-09-08 19:31:57
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 25,002
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8857984
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Colorful_World/pseuds/Colorful_World





	

**Title :** bound  
**Prompt-# :** 33  
**For :** Anonymous  
**Pairing :** Minho/Taemin, past!Jinki/Taemin, side!Eunsook/Gwiboon, implied!Jinki/Jongin  
**Author :** _Anonymous until reveals_  
**Word count :** 25,235  
**Rating :** NC-17  
**Warnings :** mention of slavery  & prostitution  
**Summary :** Taemin enters enemy land as a slave to murder the man responsible for his kingdom's defeat in a recent war. Complications arise when he is given to lord Minho as a pleasure slave instead of as a soldier  & too much time spent alone with a fellow pleasure slave, eunsook, has him questioning his motivations & softening his resolve; especially when his past catches up to him with lethal consequences.  
  


❖❖❖

taemin ran as fast as his legs could carry him, pushing through the grass that grew higher than his head.  he could hear the rustle of the others running through the fields, the voices of those who were captured muffled by the thick stalks.  he had not anticipated attempting to escape their clutches but he had done so as a means to prove himself worthy: a strong slave was a valuable slave.  he ducked to the left just as a soldier burst from the right & his lungs burned as he pushed on blindly through the grass.  there were rumors that any who reached the edge of the field without capture would be assigned to the guards & become a member of the king’s army.  that rumor was enough for taemin to continue pushing through as the green stalks slapped him in the face & his feet pounded against the damp earth.

the day was overcast & a cool spring mist hung in the air.  the chill benefited him as he dashed through the high foliage, keeping him from overheating.  those who were being hunted now wore only what they had been captured in, or had worn for the hunt: not all those who ran were there against their will.  some, like taemin, had volunteered for capture, though he suspected none other shared his motivation.  he himself had worn tight pants & a fitted long-sleeved shirt, clothes chosen to emphasize his broad shoulders & toned legs.  the dark brown hair that normally fell just beyond his shoulders was held tight in a knot atop his head.

he could see daylight peering through the stalks in front of him, just enough to give him hope of reaching his goal.  his fingers were inches away from reaching them when he heard a sudden rustle to his left & the heavy panting of someone far too near.  he burst through the stalks & found himself at the edge of a field that led to a precipice overhanging the kingdom.

he was basking in his victory when he was pushed from behind, falling to his knees.  he felt his wrists bound behind his back & he was made to stand by a tug of his arm that then guided him to a growing number of others being lined up at the edge of the field.  a soldier of clear command was evaluating each as they emerged & separating them into groups that seemed to signify where they would be assigned now that they had been captured.

taemin held his head as high as he could, back straight & expression strong; every movement indicative of strength & fortitude.  when the commander came to his position within the group he stopped, smiling as he leaned in & stroked taemin’s face with the back of a dirty finger.

“what have we here?”, he asked, his voice gruff, “such a pretty young thing.  i’m tempted to keep you for myself.”, he said with a laugh.  taemin held the soldier’s eye, knowing that such men as he would more often cower under boldness than be moved by fear.  he was wrong.  the soldier’s eyes grew dark at taemin’s firm gaze & he began to step forward with a scowl.  the sudden arrival of a third soldier pulled his attention away, leaning in as words too quiet for taemin to hear were whispered into his ear.  he nodded, looking back at taemin as the soldier disappeared down the hill.  sneering, he turned to the soldier who had brought taemin up & tilted his head toward one of the smaller groups quickly growing in the field.

“put him with the whores.”

~

taemin walked behind the others who had been chosen to be pleasure slaves, “whores” as the commander had called them.  they were all of various heights & builds, an ample variety of forms from which those of the kingdom wealthy enough to purchase one would be privileged to choose.  he kept his eyes on the hair of the one in front of him, a golden red that curled down their back, watching the passing landscape out of the corner of his eye.  it was wide & amber, a land that was not fit for vegetation & seemed designed specifically for human capture.  they were made to walk a dirt path that led to a paved road where they were placed inside a waiting shuttle pulled by identical gray mares.

they were sat individually & kept quiet by the glare of the armed guards.  their captors spoke amongst themselves, too quietly for taemin to hear, & their conversations were often punctuated with startling bursts of laughter.  behind him taemin heard the unmistakable sound of sniffling & hoped that whoever it was quickly restrained themselves before they were discovered.

he sat quietly in his seat contemplating the future that drew nearer as they travelled farther from the fields.  this was not what he had anticipated when he entered the enemy territory, not a possibility raised within the whispered conversations between himself & his elder brother.

the war had been sudden & brief, an abrupt shift from their position of authority amongst the adjoining realms to joining them in their submission to the kingdom in which he now stood in the south.  they had been given the same option every other land the kingdom gave to those they intended to conquer: give us a percentage of your land, your labor, & your foods & we will not wage war.  unlike virtually every other land taemin’s kingdom had been brazen enough to choose battle.  they lost, a humiliating defeat both in its scope & its swiftness.  revenge is what had set taemin on the path to slavery, his intention to join the guards & murder the leading warlord by the soldier’s own kingdom’s weapon.

as the king’s right hand, if choi minho died the southern kingdom would be in disarray & his own might again rise.

in his own realm his soft appearance had been of no consequence, no more beautiful than his brothers kibum & jongin: “fairy princes” they were often described as by the laypeople.  as such, to have been pulled out of the masses & placed amongst those chosen to be pleasure slaves was a turn of fate he had no recourse for: it had not been a part of the plan.  it was, however, a turn that might actually bring him closer to realizing his goal than that of a domestic or even a conscripted soldier.  he would be more vulnerable, that was true, but so would his intended target.  whoever purchased him, whether for the night or to possess, would be of a high enough standing to be a member of the same society as the king’s right hand & as such taemin would be brought near enough to achieve his intention.  such an act would put his master or mistress in harm’s way, the owner of a slave who had turned murderous, but the execution of an enemy was hardly a consideration that would cause any hesitation on his part.

he squinted his eyes & focused his thoughts on the satisfaction completing his task would bring even as his stomach began to knot with uncertainty.

it was nearly an hour in the chill air beneath a blanket of heavy clouds before they arrived at their destination, a castle, too small to be the king’s, & were separated by form into various chambers where slaves waited with knowing smiles.  they were all thin & plain, clearly domestic slaves bound with identical leather collars around their throats & dressed in simple beige frocks.  he stood still as they removed his soiled shoes & cut away the clothes he had so carefully chosen, tossing them aside into a basket that was quickly taken away.  he hissed as the mark of a slave was imprinted into his wrist.

he was examined for physical deformities & any obvious signs of illness before they led him into a room with a bath filled with steaming water.  he stepped in carefully, sitting down under the warmth & feeling the muscles still sore from his earlier flight that morning relax.  he felt his hair be unwound & combed through & closed his eyes against the familiar feeling of fingers running through the strands.  no words were spoken to him, the servants chattering amongst themselves in a language he didn’t recognize.  they made him stand & they scrubbed his entire body with coarse cloths that softened his skin.  until today, he had lived a life so sedentary & of such opulence that such an act was unnecessary.  his hair was washed & oils combed through before he was made to stand again & step back out of the warmth of the bath.

they dried him off with towels as soft as clouds, slipping his feet into slippers equally so.  he was taken to a small room with bright lights & it was there that his entire body was then massaged with fragrant oils while his hair was left to dry.  again he was all but ignored, the slaves whose bare hands roamed every inch of his flesh speaking only to themselves as taemin stood with quiet indignation.  they dressed him in loose pants, a thin string at the waist the only barrier between the faintest modesty & full nudity.

he was fed a light meal, enough to sate his appetite but not enough to bloat his body or otherwise make him too lethargic.  it was the one who came in to style his hair who finally spoke to him, a happy smile on their face at odds with their status in society.  they took the strands of hair, still damp, & began to braid them in high rows from the crown of his head to a point in the center of his skull, all around so that a dozen braids led to the spot, the rest of his hair falling loose from the band.

“a shooting star.”, they said with pride.  “a pretty design for a pretty face.”  there was no condensation in their tone or eyes & he smiled gently & bowed his head in thanks, pausing when they added, “lord minho will be pleased.”

a simple brougham waited for him when he was escorted back into the chill afternoon air.  the sun was breaking through the clouds in pockets dotting the landscape with its light.  taemin had never visited this land in his previous life & he in some ways wished he had.  the land was green & lush, fauna & flora seemed to bloom everywhere.  it was an odd contrast to the coldness of the people who inhabited the land: he had a hard time reconciling the life growing in abundance before him with the deadly warriors who had brought war to his kingdom.

the ride was brief & unenlightening.  time he had expected to familiarize himself with the land & with lord minho’s routines was no long available to him & he was now stepping out onto a gravel drive before a small fortress.  stone walls led high & guards could be seen both at its roof & the grounds surrounding.  he would be meeting his intended far earlier & with far less knowledge than he would have liked.  the change in parameters was unnerving but he was unwavering in his determination: he had come so far & lost so much to arrive that anything would be endured to ensure that it was not all in vain.

a hallway of lush carpet cushioned his steps as he was led to a set of doors that opened to a modest though open chamber.  the room was dimly lit with heavy drapes covering a full wall from the high ceiling to the ground, & incense burned somewhere, the air fragranced with the scent of sandalwood.  he nearly missed the command to relinquish the slippers the slaves had slipped onto his feet, too familiar with being referred to by his old title to recognize it was him the guard spoke of when he said “slave”.  the next commands given put him at odds with a lifetime of control & authority.  he remained motionless as his tunic was removed.

now he sat kneeling, knees warming against the cold marble floor, the foot of a bed reminiscent of his own at his back, waiting for the one who had purchased his services to arrive.  bare feet were tucked beneath his thighs & his arms were loosely tied behind his back; tight enough to keep them together, but not enough to bruise.  the binding attached to his ankles & kept him immobile as he waited.  he quelled his growing anxiety with thoughts of jinki & how he had enjoyed their time together, how his slave had moaned & smiled & caressed taemin’s cheek with the brush of his fingers.  he could do the same, he reasoned.  he could open his body & his mouth; he could smile & sigh & shudder his master into complacency.  he would need to be: taemin would not be able to murder him if he was not.

the only obstruction now to taemin’s plan was that as a pleasure slave he had no way to conceal a weapon, no method of execution was immediately available to him.  he would need time to pull a cohesive plan together & he would willingly endure anything in the interim, even the hands of an enemy stroking his bare skin, touching his flesh with his lips, & possessing taemin’s body for his own delights.

everything would eventually come to fruition as long as he was not recognized.

faint voices grew louder from behind the heavy doors that sat to the right & across the room from where taemin kneeled.  they swung open, the click echoing off the high walls of the chamber.  taemin kept his eyes on the ground, maintaining the comportment of a slave in submission as the heavy thud of boots against the floor signaled the entrance of at least two.

“what is this?”  the man’s voice was deeper than he expected, though he hadn’t thought much of it.  his plans had not included time for the soldier to breathe much less speak as he completed his task

“a gift from the prince.  he knows how you like pretty things.”  there was a derisive snort as the soldier stepped closer, the soft flutter of his cape & the thud of his shoes against the marble growing closer as taemin locked his muscles into stillness.  he could feel foreign eyes graze his body & he steadied his breathing as equal measures of anticipation & anger coursed through his veins.  so close, so close.

“tell jonghyun i send my thanks.”  his tone had turned cold, as though he were the recipient of a prank rather than a present.  he remained standing in front of taemin & the slave kept his eyes on the toes of the boots before him, heavy with steel toes worn well from much use.  a warrior’s boot.

“of course.”

“and gwiboon?”

“yes, my lord?”

“see to it that there are no disturbances tonight.”

“yes, my lord.”  taemin could almost hear the smirk the other’s face must have held as the sound of footsteps departing were followed by the heavy echo of the doors closing shut.  he found it more difficult to maintain his breathing now that he was alone with his enemy & the prospects he had not previously anticipated for lay before him.  anger kept him from shaking too violently with anticipation & he held onto it as tightly as he could, hoping that it would help him weather whatever the soldier had in mind for him.

he knew how violent a warrior could be & he had heard whispers of how such behavior followed them from the battlefield into other interactions in life, even those meant to be taken in soft beds.  choi minho was known to be a disciplined soldier, precise, a skilled combatant on the battlefield whose strategic mind brought victory to his king & he hoped that the discipline he showed as a warrior carried itself through every aspect of his life, especially the ones that now included taemin.

the boots he had kept his eyes fixed on moved away & he could hear the rustle of a cape being removed, the soft clatter of the boots after, & the unmistakable sound of a belt being unbuckled.  his chest ached with the effort to breathe steadily & the pain forming in his knees was a welcome reprieve from having to think too hard about what was happening just out of sight.  he focused on what his position would mean, how the sound of the soldier undressing & his own barely modest attire meant that he would now be at an advantage he could not have planned better for himself: alone with an unarmed choi minho.

he felt fingers slip beneath his jaw & his chin lifted.  he turned his gaze away, a demure move he had seen his own pleasure slave take when he had first been brought to taemin three years ago.  the loss of jinki’s softness had been his only hesitation to the implementation of the plan, a delay cut short by the necessity of time.  he had felt a twinge of jealousy as he left him behind in his younger brother’s care, knowing how his brother had often been caught watching the slave & the gentleness with which he spoke of the man.  with jongin he knew jinki would be safe & with jinki he knew jongin would be satisfied.  so he had pressed down his heartbreak & wrapped himself in wrath & set about on his mission.

now he found himself in jinki’s place, a slave presented before a stranger who would now be their master & control every aspect of their life, who would own their body.  he would be the perfect pleasure slave, soft & demure or whatever the warlord desired him to be.  there was not much he could do in the present moment, bound & held fast.  patience, however, would bring about opportunity, he was certain, & when it rose he would take it.

the fingers slipped away & he heard the echo of footsteps retreating, heading towards an ornate desk on the other side of the room.  the sound of a leather chair being sat in & the rustle of papers & the scratch of a pen filled the room as he continued to wait, rapidly growing confused.  time passed, taemin’s knees digging into the ground & his arms growing weak, the pattern of sunlight peeking through the heavy drapes slipping away, melting into the shadows.

more than once he had to fight the urge to speak, to demand the soldier’s attention.  instead he swallowed back his anger & focused on the myriad of ways he would seduce the other & the death he would bring upon the man that war with his own kingdom should have wrought.

the floor was illuminated by the pale lights that sat in sporadic areas throughout the room when the sounds of paper & pen finally ceased & the echo of a leather seat being vacated was followed by footsteps that headed towards taemin again.  the feet that were previously encased in the boots of a warrior now lay bare before him, startlingly pale.  the feet before him moved behind him & he could feel the bindings that held his ankles to his wrists release.

“on your feet.”  the command was calm & soft, at odds with the situation at hand.  taemin had been on his knees for nearly an hour & his ankles were still bound.  standing would not be easy & he wasn’t sure he could without falling to the ground, whether his legs would keep him steady once he rose.  he focused his thoughts on his legs, willed them to be strong as he rolled back onto the balls of his feet into an upright position.  he closed his eyes as a sudden rush of blood to his head made him dizzy, keeping them that way until he could breathe freely again.  a hand ran through the loose strands of hair trailing down his back & he barely suppressed a shiver at the sensation.

“onto the bed.”

he leaned back against the mattress behind him, pulling himself up on his elbows & then slipping his legs over, tucking them again under his body, his eyes downcast throughout.  the cover was simple, the basic bedding of a man who thrived in the field of battle.  he kept his eyes on the pattern, little divots in the material that pressed into his shins.

a jar was placed behind his fingers, the simple string holding his pants together pulled & fabric fell in a messy pile at his hips.  he rose up at the tug on the fabric & felt it slip away, leaving him completely naked.

“prepare yourself.”  he focused on the task now set before him, keeping the jar steady as he dipped a finger inside, the first step in readying his body for his enemy.  this was not an action he had taken upon himself many times, most of his experience having occurred during an experimental youth.  but he remembered how it had felt, how he had slipped his fingers into his body, & how he had not done so in the years since he had received his own pleasure slave.

his chest spread forward, his back arching as he slipped a coated finger inside, a second soon to follow, deeper & deeper, absorbing the intrusion & the stretch.  his breaths were shallow, his thoughts on jinki & the way his skin flushed at such a touch, both by his own hand & by taemin’s.  when he was finished, the jar was removed & his fingers wiped on a material he did not see but was soft to the touch.

“onto the floor.”  taemin’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion & he nearly questioned why before he caught himself.  the same movements that had gotten him up on the mattress were taken to get back down & the marble was colder than he remembered when his bare feet touched it, bending gently to his knees, naked.

he kept his eyes low as a hand was placed against the back of his head, beneath the band of loose hair, & he was moved to balance on the tops of his knees.  his toes pushed up for balance, following the guidance of the soldier’s hand.  he wanted to look up, he wanted to ask, he wanted to know what he was supposed to do, uncertain as minho’s pants remained upon his hips.  instead he kept his eyes to the ground: he knew a slave’s gaze was not to meet their master’s unless directly bidden.

the warrior’s hand remained at the back of his head but he made no move to pull him forward, said nothing, stopped now that taemin’s face was level with his waist.  was he supposed to take action on an assumption or was he to wait for a clear command?  he stared for a moment before making a decision & leaned forward to kiss minho through his loose trousers.

“bold.”, minho spoke, his voice calm & even, no hint as to whether he was pleased or angered by taemin’s actions.  a hand came into view & pulled away the swath of fabric between taemin’s lips & his intentions, letting it fall to the floor & stepping through.  presented with his fate, taemin leaned forward & took it into his mouth.

the minute he felt the weight on his tongue the discrepancy between the familiar & the foreign was acutely felt.  he focused on moving his head & mouth, tongue & lips in ways that had brought his slave satisfaction.  as much as he had loved jinki writhing beneath him, sweaty & gripping sheets with whitened fists as taemin thrust into him, it was taking the other’s cock into his mouth that gave him the most joy.  the thrill of it, the power, the reversal of roles & the way the slave would forget himself & grip taemin’s hair a bit too harshly.  belatedly, he realized he was moaning, himself growing hard at the way the action of sucking the warrior’s cock was making him feel, hoping that there would be a tug on his loose strands rather than the firm hand at the back of his head.  instead he was met with indifference: no sounds, no movement.  he thought of his kingdom & moved deeper, choking slightly in the process, years of practice working in his favor in the display of skill this night.  it worked a little, gentle thrusts into his mouth a sign that what he was doing was having more than merely a physical effect.

“turn around.”  these were the final moments, taemin thought, as he moved to his feet.  a hand was placed on his back & he was bent over the bed, his cheek against the mattress & his shoulder blades pressed together as his bound wrists sat against the small of his back.  his thighs braced against the bed & he closed his eyes, focusing on his breaths as two strong hands gripped his hips & he felt the unfamiliar intrusion of a cock push into his ass.  as he grimaced through the foreign sensation he wondered, for the first time, if jinki had actually enjoyed or endured their time together.

it was his first time in such a position, both being on bottom & being bound.  as such it wasn’t particularly pleasant, though not wholly unpleasant either.  the first strokes were slow & shallow, gradually gaining depth & a steady rhythm.  minho clearly knew what he was doing, was clearly being gentle, & it wasn’t nearly long enough before taemin found his back arching, pushing back, pulling minho in deeper.  a strong hand was pressed to his spine, pressing him back against the bedding.  it slipped its way down past his bindings & back to his hips, gripping him tighter as he thrust in quicker.  the sensations were arousing & taemin’s mouth hung open, moaning into the bedding as beads of sweat formed along his brow.  it was a gradual warmth that taemin recognized, a feeling in his gut that meant he would be coming soon.  he still hadn’t been told to speak so he kept his words on his tongue, reduced to sharp gasps & the thought of jinki’s name as he groaned, shaking as his face burrowed in the bedding.  his body continued to shake from minho’s thrusts, his eyes closed as his limbs grew heavy.  soon after, for the first time in taemin’s life, he felt the warmth of another man’s cum fill his body.  minho’s movements slowed until he stilled, & taemin sighed as minho’s cock slipped out.

he felt his racing heart slow as he gradually caught his breath, exhausted.  more than an hour had passed since he had been left in the warrior’s chambers & his legs shook from the effort of standing upright, his knees still sore from his time spent kneeling on the stiff marble.  he laid still, waiting for his next instruction.  he heard minho move through the room & smelled the familiar scent of the oil he had used earlier on himself.  there was the wet sound of a cock being slickened & then he was grunting again as minho took him, his body pounding rhythmically against the mattress.  twice more he was had, one pause long enough to slip back to his knees & take minho into his mouth.  by the time the soldier had had his fill taemin was nearly too weak to stand & his eyelids drooped with fatigue.  he fully expected that he would now be unbound & made to sleep in his master’s bed, just as he had done the first night jinki had been his.

he lay across the bed, keeping his eyes on the ground while minho moved about the room.  the binding around his wrists & ankles were removed, an action that would have been careless just a few hours ago, virtually meaningless now that taemin was too worn & weak to attempt an assault or an escape.  he was naked now, completely, fine indents in his skin reminders of his status.

“come.”  despite his weakness, he struggled to his feet & followed after the footsteps that led him to a doorway.  it opened onto a room with tiny barred windows high above & a small bed before him, nearly filling the room.  moonlight poured through the windows, illuminating the very top of the walls.  a fitting image: escape just out of reach.

“inside.”  he stepped in, feeling the cool marble turn to soft carpeting.  there was a gentle breeze as the door behind him closed followed by the sharp click of a lock being turned on the other side.  he was alone now, locked in a room with no chance of escape.  he was a royal prince in enemy land, reduced to a slave, one whose body now belonged to the king’s right hand, the man who had wrought defeat to his own kingdom.

taemin laid in the darkness.  it would take time but he would have his revenge.

he dreamt of jinki that night.

~

morning came & he was still alone.  there was a small cistern of water on the floor with a ladle resting in a jar at its side, a bucket whose purpose he grimaced at, & the bed he had slept upon.  otherwise the room was bare.  the sunlight pouring in through the windows above moved about the room & then disappeared, silver moonlight taking its place.  he waited & no one came.  he slept sporadically, falling asleep against his will.  when it was again light he began to grow anxious as still no one had come to his door.  he tried the handle but it did not move.  by nightfall his hunger had grown strong & panic had begun to set in: he had been locked inside for two days & his meager supply of water was rapidly depleting.  banging on the door & crying for help brought no reply & he could hear nothing outside of his own voice & ragged breaths.  he wondered if the silence went both ways.

by the fourth day he was too tired to move & by the sixth he had resigned himself to his fate.

he had lost count by the time the door finally opened.  the light burned in his eyes & he braced both arms across his face against it.  he lay in his bed too distraught & pained to remember where he was or what he was supposed to do.

“dress.”  the voice was unfamiliar.

“what?”  the door began to close again.

“wait!”  he scurried out of the bed & fell to the floor, scrambling towards the doorway with his eyes still closed.  the light was so bright & the air was so fresh.  he breathed it deeply.   a thin pair of pants & a light tunic were handed to him & he slipped the material over his naked body with shaking fingers.

“follow me.”  this time he didn’t question & just followed the sound of heavy boots moving across the marble floor, blinking into the light as his vision slowly cleared.  he recognized the uniform of a guard & hastened to keep up with their military gait.  a second guard stood at the entrance, holding the door open for the first & for taemin to step through.  his bare feet sank into thick carpet as they travelled down a corridor he didn’t recognize: two turns & they arrived at a simple chamber door.

the guard knocked & a moment later a woman answered.  
  
she wore an emerald green gown that brushed against her bare feet & cinched at the waist. a wave of ebony hair hung to the tips of her elbows & she smiled at the both as though they were familiar friends.  
  
“good morning, minjung. is this him?”  
  
“yes miss.”  
  
“thank you, minjung.”  
  
“miss.” the soldier, minjung, bowed slightly as the woman then turned to taemin.  
  
“hello. my name is eunsook. won’t you come in?”, she asked. taemin glanced at minjung whose face, he was surprised to see, held a soft gaze & a gentle smile. looking back at the woman, he stepped tentatively across the threshold, blinking as the door clicked shut behind him. she slipped an arm around his shoulders & placed a hand at his waist as she led him to a small table laden with a modest meal.  
  
“go slowly,” she said, “you don’t want to make yourself sick.” he nodded as he began to take timid bites, savoring the flavor of the simple food, hunger making everything taste a thousand times more delicious.  
  
he nearly cried when the bowl was removed from his grasp.  
  
“when we are grateful for that which we have received we express it with our words.” he shook, weak with hunger & disoriented from his time in isolation. he also burned with frustration as he held fast to his role as a slave & fought the urges his previous role of royalty would have allowed.  
  
“thank you.” she nodded & placed the bowl before him.  
  
“that is better. we will work on being gracious.” she sat across from him, watching as he nibbled at the morsels on his plate.  
  
“what is your name?” he hesitated, wondering how common his name was in this kingdom as opposed to his own where many a child bore the same moniker.  
  
“my friends call me ‘taem’”, he replied, a sort of compromise of the truth.  
  
“am i your friend?” he stopped chewing & stared at her, wondering if he had broken some custom, crossed some invisible line. her eyes crinkled & she laughed heartily.  
  
“we shall be friends, taem. i would like that very much.” they sat in silence while he continued to eat.  
  
“do you remember when you arrived?”  
  
“the 16th.”  
  
“it is the 24th.”  
  
“i was in a room.”, he said cautiously.  
  
“yes.”  
  
i don’t...know...what i did.”  
  
“nothing.” his brows furrowed.  
  
“why then?”  
  
“a reminder of one’s place.”  
  
“it was not needed.” his tone was too sharp but eunsook only raised an eyebrow.  
  
“and an example of the consequences of disobedience.”  
  
“you said i did nothing.”, he replied, forcing his words to appear confused & not irritated.  
  
“now you know what will happen if you do.” he sipped his tea & tried to clear his muddled head. “there are rules to follow & i will teach you the basics so that you will be prepared when you return tonight.”  
  
“return?”  
  
“of course.” she took the empty cup from his hand & placed it back on the tray. “you will be escorted back just as you were escorted here. you will be left in your master’s chamber where you will await his arrival.” she looked at him directly. “you will do so on your knees.”  
  
“why?” this time he was unsuccessful in masking his irritation, grimacing at the knowing smile that bloomed upon eunsook’s lips.  
  
“an act of submission. when you know he is arriving that is how you should be posed. ready, waiting.”  
  
“do i kneel when he arrives unexpectedly?”  
  
“no. but you should not remain sitting or lying down if he is standing. & you should do neither until he bids you to do so.”  
  
“i understand.” she narrowed her eyes & smiled.  
  
“we shall see. now. let us get you bathed.”  
  
eunsook bathed him herself, he still a bit too shaky & weak to do much other than sit up. she commented on how soft his hair was as she tenderly unbraided it, running her fingers through the strands & gently unlacing the knots that had formed during his confinement. he tried not to sigh too loudly as he slipped beneath the warm water & felt her fingertips caress his skin. the cloth she used was gentle & the scent of the soap was clean. the thin pants she had him step into were similar to the ones he had been dressed in the first night. a light tunic was slipped over his shoulders as well. she braided his hair in the same design as she gave him advice on how to behave when he was again alone with his master.  
  
the guard from earlier that day, minjung, arrived a few hours later & taemin weakly bade eunsook farewell as he left.  
  
“i will see you tomorrow. remember what i have told you.” he nodded as he stepped into the hallway.  
  
the guard was a little less brusque on the walk back. she glanced at him a time or two but never spoke. as she opened the chamber door for him she smiled. he stepped into the room timidly, flinching when the door shut heavily behind them. his steps were slow as he made his way to the foot of the bed, turning around, & kneeling as he had when he was first brought to minho, heeding eunsook’s words & assuming the role of a slave waiting for their master’s return.  
  
the familiar sound of muffled voices growing louder, the door opening, & the clack of boots against the marble floor: they all echoed in taemin’s ears & he shivered at the familiarity of it. the soft shuffle of a cape being disrobed, the thump of boots being dropped, & the metallic clink of a belt being unbuckled echoed through the room & taemin focused on the beats of his heart as his blood thudded dully in his ears.  
  
his second night with minho was a repetition of the first with the same commands & the same position. this time he was unbound & his legs were spread wider, his hands able to brace against the bed as his body moved with minho’s thrusts. the adrenaline rush of their first night had dissipated & though minho’s skilled movements were arousing, even as he was groaning through his orgasm taemin’s thoughts were on the room he had spent a week locked in & wondering when he would be let out again after this night.  
  
he lay limply on the bed, naked, filled with his master’s cum & covered in his sweat. minho stepped away & he heard the rustle of cloth as he stepped into a pair of loose pants.  
  
“come.”  
  
he moved slowly off the bed onto weak legs, barely able to keep standing. the steps across the floor were cold against his bare feet & he was still undressed when the lock clicked behind him. the room smelled fresh & the water had been replenished & the bedding replaced. the bed was softer than he remembered & he stared at the wall until his eyes could stay open no longer.  
  
taemin’s sleep was sporadic at best that night & the sound of a door unlocking had him sitting upright. by the time the door was fully open he was on his knees at the foot of his bed with his hands at his sides & his eyes to the ground. minho stood in the doorway a moment before stepping forward & pulling taemin in by the back of his head. he too was naked.  
  
minjung escorted taemin down the winding hallway to the chamber he had been taken to the previous morning. the same woman, eunsook, met them at the door with the same warm smile & soon the two of them were alone. he sat on a small sofa while she tucked her feet beneath her on a stiff arm chair, each with a cup that eunsook had poured fresh tea into when taemin had arrived.  
  
“it is good to see you again.” he nodded, staring into his tea, his fingers tapping against the cup. “and you as well.” he looked up.  
  
“what?”  
  
“when a person tells you that it is good to see you it is polite to acknowledge both the words & the sentiment.”  
  
“oh.” she watched him with a little smile as the meaning of her words sunk it. “it is nice to see you as well.” he cursed himself: even a slave would know to answer when spoken to.  
  
“excellent.”, she said as she stood. “i think i would like more tea.” she picked up the tray the tea set was on & left the room. moments later there was a quick knock on the door & a guard entered. she was tall with short black hair that framed her face, a thin scar over her right brow. a gentle smile graced her lips, a look wholly at odds with the uniform she wore. taemin remained where he was sat on the sofa, watching her with a mix of confusion & nerves.  
  
“have you come to escort me?”  
  
the soldier’s head whipped to him & she glared.  
  
“he is new my lady,” eunsook’s warm voice spoke as she entered the room. she placed the tray upon the table & then moved behind the soldier, propping her head over the warrior’s leather-clad shoulder. “within a month he will understand his role & not be so brazen in his ignorance. he will know better & his behavior will reflect his knowledge.”  
  
“see that it does.” taemin’s ears perked up, the voice sounding familiar yet he could not quite place it.  
  
“would you like some tea?”  
  
“no.” she turned then, here gaze immediately softening as her eyes met eunsook’s. “i just wanted to see you.”  
  
“hmm.” eunsook hummed as she smiled at the soldier beside her. they walked to the door & taemin turned away at the guard’s pointed stare. he heard the soft sound of a chaste kiss & then the door was closing again.  
  
“do not worry, she will forgive your insolence.”  
  
“who is she?”  
  
“my mistress. lady gwiboon.” taemin’s blood chilled at the name. he knew he recognized the voice. he flushed when he realized that she had seen him bound & nearly naked kneeling on the floor.  
  
“she is your master’s first. that is why you have been entrusted to my care. one of many reasons.”  
  
“what are the others?”  
  
“you are from the north.” it was not a question.  
  
“yes.”, he said, confused by the abrupt shift in conversation.  
  
“well bred. wealthy background.”  
  
“how did you-”  
  
“a good education that you did not make good use of. you focused on the topics that interested you & left yourself ignorant of the ones that did not. you still do.” he turned away, embarrassed. “come. let us have a meal & a bath & a rest. you look quite exhausted.”  
  
taemin soon learned that minho was a man of routine, strict & unwavering. he woke two hours before morning meal & would arrive at taemin’s door an hour later, sweaty & breathless, taemin waiting for him on his knees. when he was satisfied he would leave & taemin would not see him again until after evening meal when minho would bend him over the mattress & have him. after which he would take his slave to the small chamber he slept in & lock him in for the night.  
  
he stopped dreaming of jinki.  
  
he missed him deeply & knew, as he had known when he left him behind in the care of his younger brother, that they would never again lay eyes upon each other. knowing & comprehending are not of equal measure & the reality of his situation began to cover his heart like a shroud.  
  
minho never yelled, never raised a hand to taemin, never even said an unkind word. he never said a kind word either, everything was neutral: his mannerisms, his expressions, his tone. if he never came taemin would never have known that he enjoyed the things taemin allowed him to do with his body.  
  
he was a man of habit which was of great benefit to taemin as he formulated his plan for revenge. he was also a careful man who took great care to ensure his personal safety, a fact which left taemin with a rapidly dwindling list of methods of execution.  
  
days passed, the sun beginning to shine brighter through his bedroom’s windows, & the routine remained the same. time was passing & opportunities were not presenting themselves. he wished he had not come alone. he began to wonder why he had come at all, why he had believed himself capable of completing a task he was so clearly unfit for.  
  
taemin’s days were spent with eunsook in her chambers which were modest & surprisingly cozy, cool & dim. he was fed & bathed by other slaves in eunsook’s care, youths who had yet to be claimed & who were esteemed valuable enough to be trained by the elder. he was given little tasks that kept him soft, both physically & mentally. she was kind but she was sharp, never letting taemin wander from her sight.  
  
taemin quickly noticed a pattern when it came to his meals. everything was served with a spoon, no knives or forks, & he was watched attentively while he ate, his bowl & spoon swept up as soon as he took his last bite. nothing sharp lay within eunsook’s chambers, nothing heavy or blunt. it was very airy & soft with a palette that reminded taemin of the icy sea.  
  
the grace with which she carried herself as a slave confused taemin. jinki had not been recalcitrant in his role, but neither had he filled it so elegantly as eunsook did. he wondered if she had not been royalty herself before her life of enslavement. her kindness was unexpected & the devotion shown by her mistress was as well.  
  
she would come & spend afternoon meal with eunsook sporadically, whenever her schedule for the day permitted. often enough it would be taemin who would stand to greet her, eunsook attending to the training of another slave. it was unnerving to have such a skilled warrior so near, especially when he knew, despite their concealment, she was heavily armed at all times. despite knowing it, she never referred to him by name & her face remained neutral when they spoke. it was a different thing all together when her eyes landed on her slave & her name slipped through her lips. if the laws allowed it he was certain they would have been wed by now: settling for what little they were permitted seemed enough for the two.  
  
lady gwiboon sighed at every joke eunsook made but her eyes sparkled fondly at the woman. often she would forget taemin’s presence & allow eunsook to lean her head against her mistress’ shoulder, a hand laid casually against lady gwiboon’s leather-clad thigh. knowing who she was & what she was capable of still set him on edge. but the way she was with eunsook, the way eunsook smiled so happily at her mistress put him a bit more at ease.  
  
gwiboon’s devotion to eunsook was something of an anomaly between the holders & their slaves & as taemin watched them together a burst of sadness rose unbidden that he quickly pressed down.  
  
he was not here to mourn his loss. he was here for revenge.  
  
yet he could not help but be curious.  
  
“i was gifted to my mistress on her third birthday, just a few months before my fifth.”, eunsook said as she scrubbed taemin’s scalp. he lay naked in a bath & they were alone, the two young slaves she normally trained having recently been acquired. more would come.  
  
“they gifted a child with a pleasure slave?” eunsook laughed.  
  
“no. i was to be a companion. simple tasks as well, domestic & such. but mostly to be as my lady desired. she kissed me ten years later & took me into her bed a year after that.” she moved the wet strands over his shoulder & began massaging the muscles beneath. “you should learn to use your hands in this manner to please lord minho.” taemin immediately stiffened & he knew she could not have missed the reflex. she made no remark.  
  
he was startled to feel a growing kinship with her. she had a smile that lit the room & a sense of humor that had him laughing despite his predicament. she was gentle with him, small touches after gaining his permission, surprising him with her request. when they were alone, eunsook combed his hair, letting it fall loose & braiding it again before minjung arrived. it was selfish but he smiled when she ran her fingers through the strands. her kindness was so easy & he found himself allowing it to envelope him: he wasn’t built to be an assassin & his anger could only sustain him so well. he never forgot his purpose, though it was difficult to be in the presence of someone as lovely as eunsook for hours while planning a future so dark. especially when those plans had no method of materialization.  
  
as the cool of spring gradually began to warm under a summer sun, the days he spent with eunsook were no longer restricted to her chambers but rather began to include excursions out of doors that at first were infrequent but slowly gained regularity to the point that they were a daily occurrence. they would take walks through the gardens, accompanied by guards, or sit on the grounds & have their afternoon meal. some days they would play games. & some days they would just talk. often it would be eunsook speaking of minho while taemin listened.  
  
she spoke so highly of him, indicated more than once that taemin was blessed to have been taken by such a noble warrior as choi minho. he had no recourse against her praise. he knew of slaves who were mistreated by their masters; beaten & forced into acts no person should have to endure. minho’s indifference could have been a match to stoke the flames of his wrath but he was beginning to feel the embers grow cold at eunsook’s words. his master was a man of great import & he could not afford to grow attached to possessions; it would be a weakness that could destroy them both. he wondered if minho would have continued to take him if he had ever shown an unwillingness. he didn’t believe so. his demureness, keeping his eyes to the ground, might have been interpreted by some as hesitation or a disinclination to the acts minho performed upon his body, but it would not have been unreasonable for the assumption to be made that slaves from the north were prone to such behaviors, & he suspected that those brought to minho often behaved the same. he also suspected that those who were only kept for one night were treated with greater kindness & gentleness than he was, that their names were asked. when told of who his master was even the young slaves smiled & said that they hoped to be possessed by one who would be so respected.  
  
everyone seemed to know his master so much more intimately than he did himself. & he could feel the desire to know more weaving its way through his desire for vengeance.  
  
the relationship between slave & master began to slowly change, small addendums to the routine that taemin nearly missed in his ruminations. minho began running his fingers through his hair before he left him in the mornings. in the evenings he would brush a hand against taemin’s cheek before pulling his face away & turning him around. occasionally he would stand in eunsook’s doorway & taemin would not know he was there until eunsook caught his eye.  
  
it was seeing minho with a small child that made taemin realize how complicated things had become. having never looked upon his face when they were alone, he had never seen his master smile before, had not thought the warrior capable of the action. he was on the grounds with eunsook playing a simple game of cards on a blanket set upon the grass when eunsook pointed him out, too far to call to him if he had been so inclined. he wore the leather uniform taemin had caught glimpses of & the cape he had only ever heard fluttered behind him as he walked. beyond him a small child was running in the grass with his friends when he stumbled & fell onto some pebbles laid out as a pathway.  
  
he immediately began to cry, standing up on wobbly legs & looking down at his knees. minho rushed over to him & knelt down, a hand at the child’s shoulder. taemin watched in amazement as minho spoke words he couldn’t hear & the boy began to laugh, nodding & clapping his hands. minho picked him up & swung him in the air, a bright smile on his face & a laughter that barely carried to where taemin sat. the child grinned with delight & put his arms up for more when minho landed him on the ground. a few more minutes were spent in this manner until a woman, presumably the child’s mother, came to retrieve him. he waved good-bye to minho & blew a kiss to the warrior who blew one back & waved at the departing child. he was still smiling when he turned around, moving in the direction he had been before the commotion.  
  
“are you all right?”, came eunsook’s gentle question, a soft hand at his wrist. he turned to her, startled. nodding he replied, “yes. quite. shall we continue?”  
  
when minho took him that night, as laconic as always, taemin wondered what depths lay in a man whose reputation was that of a fierce warrior yet could so easily dote on a child that wasn’t his. he would not have thought his master capable of such compassion & joy had he not witnessed it for himself.  
  
the longer taemin stayed within the confines of the fortress unable to enact his revenge the less he was able to hold onto his resolve. viewing a man as the enemy in the abstract was one thing but to then witness them smile & swing a small child in the air brought in contingencies he had no retort for.  
  
he was surrounded by too much gray & he couldn’t figure a way out.  
  
taemin had begun to realize what a fool he had been. perhaps he had been too sheltered in his own royal life to truly grasp the complexities of a kingdom. he had set out on this mission brimming with indignation & fervor, grasping at the hope of revenge rather than accepting the uncertain future that defeat had wrought. the spark of uncertainty that had burst into a flame now illuminated all the dark corners where those whispers had hidden, keeping their lies & fallacies away from where the young prince could asses them well. his heart & his pride had ruled & all the minutiae lay blurry at the edges.  
  
taemin had done this to himself.  
  
his heart had been broken & he had been the one to shatter it.  
  
his motivations began to change. he could no longer envision himself taking a knife to his master’s neck. instead, he would embrace his new life & absorb what little happiness it might provide.  
  
~  
  
“he has never kept a slave as long as he’s kept you.”, eunsook said with a knowing smile.  
  
“he has had others before me?”, taemin was surprised to hear himself ask, embarrassed by the the tinge of sadness in his voice: he had not realized that he held the assumption that he was minho’s first.  
  
“does that upset you?”  
  
“should it?”  
  
“that is not the question.” he swallowed & stared at the floor & willed it to absorb him into its depths. it remained static & intact.  
  
“why did he not keep them long?” she watched him for a moment before leaning back.  
  
“he never has. he takes them into his bed & then sends them to someone who will.”  
  
“that seems cruel.”  
  
“not at all. they become valuable after their time with him. it is an honor to bed a slave who has been had by the king’s right hand.” taemin sat & thought on that. he supposed it was not so dissimilar to the way things were in his own kingdom. it was not something he had ever truly considered as jinki had been the only slave he had ever had & the only one he had ever desired. he would not have traded him for anything but... the thought ran cold & he shivered at what he had done.  
  
“does it truly bother you so?” eunsook asked, mistaking the cause of his sorrow.  
  
“more than it should.”, he whispered, an answer not wholly intended for the topic at hand.  
  
“fondness is rarely a bad thing. there is safety in such.”  
  
“it is bad when it is one-sided & when that which one is fond of can so easily be ripped away.”  
  
“perhaps,” she said, her attention turning back to the embroidery in her hand, “but it is often all we have. besides, i do not think it is as one-sided as you believe it to be.”  
  
“he’s never asked my name.”, he said quietly. at that she looked up, confusion on her brow.  
  
“never?”  
  
“no.”  
  
“how does he address you?”  
  
“he...” he suddenly realized that perhaps he ought not to discuss his complaints with a slave who had the ear of his master’s first.  
  
“taem,” eunsook said, reaching over to cover his wrist with her hand. “it is fine if you do not want to tell me. but know that what you say will remain between us.”  
  
“even from lady gwiboon?”, he asked in a small voice. she leaned forward & fixed her gaze on him.  
  
“there are few things that i will not share with my mistress. your secrets are among them.” she laughed at the look of fear on his face. “do not worry. i have permission.”  
  
“he gives commands & i follow them. he says no more & i say nothing at all.”  
  
“but he does not punish you?”  
  
“no. he is not unkind. he is...he is nothing.” eunsook’s eyebrows raised. taemin sputtered on. “i mean that his voice is never happy nor sad, angry or nervous.”  
  
“this sounds so unlike minho.”  
  
“i do not know why i am telling you this.”  
  
“we have so few people to share our secrets with, taem. we share them with each other.”  
  
“i am not certain how much pleasure i actually bring him.”  
  
“how does he look at you?”  
  
“i do not know.” eunsook laughed softly.  
  
“what do you mean?”  
  
“i do not see his face.” she frowned.  
  
“i’m not speaking only of sex, taem. i’m-”  
  
“ever. he has never bid me look at his face.”  
  
“oh.” she was watching him now with a mixture of things that included pity & he did not want that.  
  
“i am a good slave.” he glowered, his chest puffed out in indignation  
  
“yes, of course.”  
  
“i know my place.” she seemed taken aback by the sharpness of his tone.  
  
“i did not mean to imply otherwise.” he caught his breath & realized what he was saying, how he was saying it.  
  
“forgive me.”  
  
“it is fine, taem, you have committed no wrong.” now she was studying him & he bore it fitfully, shifting in his seat.  
  
“would you like my advice?” he nodded silently. “i have never been bedded by minho but he has been great friends with my mistress since they joined the guards together nearly ten years ago.”  
  
“ten?”  
  
“they joined quite young.”, she said with a mischievous smile. “minho is his own man & he enjoys things to be a certain way. some would describe that as rigidity, others discipline. but he works from a sense of honor that is unshakable. i do not believe he would be displeased if you were to look upon his face. if anything, he may not have commanded you to because he believed it to be something you would not desire. it is not my place to speak on what happens between you when the chamber doors are shut. but perhaps here, with me in attendance, it would not be so bold a move.”  
  
“perhaps.”  
  
“you may consider it or you may dismiss it, the choice is entirely yours. as to calling you by name, that is a curious aversion for which i have no advice. he must have a reason though i cannot fathom what it might be.”  
  
taemin thought on eunsook’s words as minjung took him back to minho’s chambers. he thought on them as he waited on his knees for his master’s arrival. & he thought on them as he took minho into his mouth. he thought on them as he prepared himself for his master & he thought on them as he braced himself against minho’s thrusts, knees & arms pressing into the cover with the divots. he thought on them as he felt minho’s cum fill him, closing his eyes against the sensation & catching his own breath. he thought on them as he was led to across the marble floor & he thought on them as he heard the click of the door locking him into his tiny space. he thought on them as he lay his head against his pillow & he thought on them as he stared at the moonlight on the wall.  
  
and in the morning he met minho’s gaze as he waited on his knees. he stood long enough to watch minho’s eyebrows begin to raise, long enough to make certain that minho saw, that he noticed what taemin had done, long enough that he was shaking by the time he began to lean forward. he closed his eyes when he felt the familiar hand at the back of his head.  
  
he swallowed until minho was satisfied & then discreetly wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, keeping his eyes to the floor as minho moved away. the door to his room remained open, a sliver of light slicing across his shoulder. he looked up, anxious to determine the cause. minho stood in the doorway looking down at him. he stayed on the floor looking back up at minho. the faintest twitch of a smile pulled at his master’s lip before he turned & disappeared into the main chamber.  
  
minjung arrived soon after.  
  
he told eunsook of what he had done, of how he had shaken. she smiled & pulled his head to her chest, stroking her fingers through his hair & telling him that it was good, that he was brave.  
  
“he still has not said my name.”  
  
“but he has seen your face.” taemin nodded into her shoulder & closed his eyes, willing her confidence to entrust itself to his care.  
  
when minho arrived that night to find taemin in his usual position of submission, on his knees with his hands at his sides, eyes cast down, he paused on the threshold, the door falling closed behind him. taemin waited as the seconds ticked by & his master made no movement. he made to raise his head but minho’s sharp “stop” had his blood running cold & his body locking in place. he listened to the familiar click of minho’s boots, the whirl of his cape being discarded. there was no belt buckle, however.  
  
a change in the routine. minho never wavered in his adherence to the routine.  
  
his breaths were shallow & heavy as he listened to minho’s bare feet patter across the marble floor. there were several reasons he could think of for why the belt stayed fastened around minho’s waist & none of the likely ones were good. he swallowed hard & focused on eunsook’s words, on her certainty in minho’s good character. soon the pale feet he had laid eyes on so many times were before him again. he stared at the toes, long & oddly elegant, & waited.  
  
he felt calloused fingers brush under his chin & gently press against his jaw, lifting up his face. he closed his eyes & tried to keep from shaking, the fingers still at his chin.  
  
“i would see your eyes.” he swallowed & took a deep breath before slowly forcing his eyes open, his lashes fluttering at the effort. when his vision came into focus it was onto minho’s deep brown eyes that it rested. until that morning taemin had only caught glimpses of his captor’s face.  
  
when he had first come he had known the name of the man he sought, but had only a rough sketch of his face memorized. it had hardly done him justice. his nose was straight & his eyes were wide & dark, nearly black with long eyelashes that gave him a soft appearance. his hair was not long but not short, just enough length to be bound back as it had been when he’d arrived that morning. now he wore it loose & taemin could see the little curls crowning his head & peering beneath his ears. his lips were round &, even as he now pressed them together, full. taemin did not let his gaze travel any farther, already having taken liberties by allowing it to fall to his master’s mouth. he watched as those dark eyes observed him in a way that made his skin tingle. he didn’t know minho’s expressions at all & what he saw was only a blank face.  
  
the fingers left his chin & minho took a step back. the sound of a belt being unbuckled brought the sting of tears to taemin’s eyes & he blinked rapidly to bid them away. he kept still & he kept his eyes on minho & he kept reminding himself that eunsook thought this was a good man.  
  
he shivered in relief when the belt was tossed aside, clattering to the floor in an unexpected act of sloth. he closed his eyes for a moment & let out a shaky breath, bringing his gaze back up to his master & keeping it there.  
  
“stand.” shaky legs lifted taemin from the ground & he kept his eyes on minho as he stood.  
  
“prepare yourself.” he nodded & turned away, heading to the cabinet beside the bed where minho kept his oils. he pulled one out & placed it on the table & then paused. this was the moment where he usually undressed with his eyes cast down, unhurried but not enticing. he looked up now, watched minho’s face as he pulled the string of his tunic loose & let it slip off his shoulders onto the floor. his trousers met a similar fate & he stepped out of the puddle of fabric & climbed atop the bed, the jar & a soft cloth in hand.  
  
it was the same action he had performed dozens of times by now, weeks had passed since he arrived of that he was sure, but it was different now that he saw minho watching him. there was a difference in seeing the eyes he already knew rove over his flesh & he felt it intimately. it was enticing & he watched as all the little hints & twitches that had remained hidden from him all this time were finally revealed. the double adam’s apple that bobbed whenever minho swallowed, something he did more & more frequently as taemin’s attentions to himself continued. his arms stayed crossed across his broad chest but his eyes narrowed & darkened as he watched his slave open himself up. it was all so minute & quiet, if he hadn’t been looking for the signs he might not have seen them. he nearly laughed when he noticed the blush at the tips of his master’s ears.  
  
“enough.” taemin pulled his fingers out & wiped them on the cloth beside his knee. then he sat & waited, watching as minho took off his trousers & took the jar in one hand, slicking himself up with the other. he left it on the floor & climbed onto the bed in front of taemin. they sat on their knees facing each other, watching, breathing.  
  
“on your back.” taemin’s mouth opened in surprise, his body slow to respond to the command. he leaned to the side & then rolled onto his back, his knees bent & his legs slightly apart. master & slave were still watching each other as minho reached down & pushed taemin’s legs apart, spreading him wide. he had been on his back before but it was when he was with jinki & there was something distinctly different about watching someone you love press on you & someone you have mixed feelings about press into you. the angle was new but minho was the same, not too rough & not too soft, his hands braced beside taemin’s hips as he moved their bodies in tandem.  
  
watching minho watch him was making everything far more complicated now that they were in bed. & he was having difficulty deciding what to do with his hands. when it had been jinki he’d lain beneath it had been no thought at all to place his hands at his slave’s waist. with minho, however, he was forced to find a way to brace himself without touching his master. so he bent his elbows & clutched at the bedding with white knuckles.  
  
the moans he’d so often kept buried into the mattress now stormed freely through the air & he found it harder & harder to keep his eyes open. he came without warning, hot cum splattering across his abdomen as he groaned, his fists up by his head grasping uselessly at loose pillows. he recognized the sounds & opened his tired eyes to finally see what minho looked like when he spilled his cum inside taemin’s body.  
  
he wanted to reach up & brush the sweaty hair from his master’s forehead. he wanted to dab at his nape & neck & kiss the little rivulet that ran down his jaw. he wanted to ask him if he was good.  
  
minho pulled away, stepping onto the floor & marching purposefully towards his trousers & slipping them back on. taemin flinched when he picked up the belt & relaxed again when it was put away with the soldier’s boots. he sat up onto his knees, staying on the bed until he was commanded to move. it was unusual for minho to have him only once. tonight, in many ways, seemed to be the exception.  
  
“gather your garments.” another shift in the paradigm. he stepped onto the cold marble & knelt down to retrieve his clothing, carrying them in his arms as he was led to his small room. he stepped onto the carpet & turned to see minho watching him.  
  
“i will see your eyes from now on.” there was a pause & taemin realized that minho was waiting for a response.  
  
“yes, my lord.”, the first words he had ever spoken to his master. another pause & then minho’s face disappeared behind the closing door. the click of the lock echoing harshly in taemin’s ears.  
  
~  
  
taemin sat with eunsook on the benches reserved for the guards’ pleasure slaves. there were not many among the ranks of enough status to own one outright & they found themselves in a rather small though distinguished crowd. it was a warm day, the summer sun burning unobstructed by clouds & its heat diluted only by the softest breeze. taemin’s tunic sat low on his chest, near to his navel. he was uncertain how he was to be dressed in public when so much of his time was spent behind closed doors: even on the grounds of minho’s estate he was afforded some semblance of privacy. it was eunsook who explained that he should look his most enticing when presented as minho’s slave: he needed to show what a fine possession his master held. she helped him with his appearance, lining his eyes & adjusting his garments, dressing him in the sheerest trousers & blouse that could still be respectably worn in a crowd.  
  
her own aqua dress was sleeveless & cut low revealing soft breasts, tight around a slim waist & full hips, her legs highlighted by an indiscrete slit up one thigh. her hair hung smooth down her back & a golden bracelet wound about her upper arm.  
  
they had been watching for nearly an hour as warrior after warrior battled it out in a dirt pit surrounded by seats filled with citizens & nobility alike. various regimens had fought amongst themselves to achieve victory that they then struggled against a foreign opponent to maintain. they were meaningless matches, meant to be easy entertainment until the real show began.  
  
the minute minho stepped into the pit the crowd lost all pretense of calm. taemin watched in awe as a wave of people stood & applauded, calling out cheers & encouragement for the reigning defender. he felt an odd mixture of bewilderment, anger, & pride at the sight: to know that he was owned by such a powerful man was oddly thrilling.  
  
minho wore a leather vest & pants, a sword in his hand. his hair was pulled back in the smallest of tails, little curls falling around the crown of his head. unlike some of the previous fighters, he made no elaborate show of strength, simply raised his hands in acknowledgment of the crowd, turning to face them all. he paused when his eyes met taemin’s, narrowing slightly, & then he took his stance. the first three contestants were quickly laid to waste, lucky that this was not a battle to the death. minjung was the first to last more than thirty seconds in the ring, bearing herself in a way that surprised taemin: he’d only seen her as soft & it hadn’t occurred to him that minho would not have entrusted his care to any but the best of his warriors.  
  
their dance was incredible to watch, their bodies moving as though they were born with blades attached at their wrists. taemin was well enough with a blade, a skill he had learned as a youth, but the way minho & minjung carried theirs was almost reverential. there was something intimate & spiritual in the way they fought that superseded his early emotions & replaced them with unabashed awe. it was a disappointment when minjung took a misstep & was taken to the ground by minho. he smiled as he helped her up & she nodded with a grimace, clearly upset but not ungracious in her defeat. the crowd applauded loudly as she left the pit. the sound died immediately as the next opponent entered.  
  
gwiboon’s appearance was the same in every way as all the other warriors but her stance, her poise, her very being was so intrinsically unique that there was no comparison: her leather uniform fit her in a way that made it seem impossible that anything else ever touched her skin. even the grace with which minjung had fought would look amateurish & clunky by comparison. she was, in a word, flawless.  
  
especially as a warrior. taemin watched with amazement as his master battled with his first in a match that seemed equal parts brutal & elegant. the turns of their hips & the steps of their feet, the way their shoulders moved, a seamless weaving of dance & combat. time passed slowly & the crowd watched enraptured as the greatest warriors in the land proved their merit of such titles. taemin was leaning forward, his fingers gripping the underside of his seat & his breath came in shorter & shorter bursts. he had never seen anything like it in his life.  
  
in the end it was minho who was victorious, though it almost seemed a stroke of luck rather than a display of skill. gwiboon’s sword had caught on minho’s garment & he had used the momentum to knock her to the ground, holding her there by a foot to her throat. she too appeared displeased at her loss though unlike minjung she was not particularly gracious about it, punching minho on the shoulder as she rose & garnering laughter & applause from the crowds. if it had been any other there may have been repercussion both publicly & privately. but minho just laughed & ruffled her hair, irritating her further.  
  
eunsook touched a hand to taemin’s leg as the crowds begin to disperse.  
  
“we wait until the others are gone to take our leave. we leave with them.”, she said, nodding her head at gwiboon & minho. the soldiers stood in the pit talking, the dwindling crowds forgotten. gwiboon patted minho on the shoulder & then turned her attention to eunsook, smiling & beckoning her to come.  
  
“i will see you tomorrow, perhaps.” eunsook said as she stood. “or perhaps the day after.” she smiled lasciviously & left taemin alone, happily accepting the arm her mistress offered. he watched them go & then turned back to find minho watching him, still standing in the pit with his sword. they were alone now & taemin found himself breathless again, not sure whether he should stand or stay. moments passed & no indication was given for either so he decided to move & he stood & began making his way to the aisle, down the stairs, & onto the dirt.  
  
he stood before his master in the sunlight, watching as fine trickles of sweat poured from his brow & little tufts of hair laying damp against his skin. he fought the urge to tuck them away, an urge that startled him.  
  
“you watched?”  
  
“yes, my lord.”  
  
“everything.?”  
  
“every match, my lord.”  
  
“where did i fail?”  
  
“i...what?” the lack of formal address went unnoticed by taemin, so startled by the question that he forgot himself.  
  
“where did i fail?”, minho asked again, his tone neutral.  
  
“within the matches?”, taemin replied, uneasy.  
  
“yes.”  
  
“i...”  
  
“answer truthfully.” minho’s gaze was dark & heavy & taemin felt compelled to speak truth under its weight.  
  
“you ducked when you should have blocked when minjung attacked, my lord. when gwiboon turned you should have struck her.”  
  
“any others?”  
  
“those were the strongest, my lord.” minho’s eyes narrowed. taemin dropped his eyes to the ground, unable to take much more of the scrutiny.  
  
“come.” he followed after the warrior as he left the pit, passing guards that saluted & never looked taemin’s way. an open-air vehicle sat waiting for them & a driver stepped out to open minho’s door. he stepped aside & waved taemin in first. taemin climbed in unsteadily, moving to the far seat & staring at his toes as minho climbed in & they began to move. the air through his hair felt nice as his tunic rustled softly against his skin. they stopped & minho was halfway to the entrance before taemin’s foot hit the ground. he hurried to catch up, reaching the door just as minho disappeared through it. they continued in silence, minho leading them & taemin watching him from behind. they passed the doors to minho’s chambers & taemin’s brow furrowed in confusion.  
  
it all came clear as minho pushed through a set of unfamiliar doors into a bathing chamber, a sunken basin already filled with steaming water fragranced with blossoms & a pile of towels sitting nearby. a smiling slave bowed & left as soon as they entered, the door clicking shut behind them. he stood by a wall as minho removed his boots & unlaced his vest, pulling it over his head, tossing it to the floor. the pants he had worn were quick to follow & then the band holding back his hair. he shook his head & turned to look at taemin over his shoulder.  
  
“why are you still dressed?”  
  
“my lord has not commanded me to be otherwise.”  
  
“he is commanding you now. undress.” taemin nodded & slipped quickly out of his loose tunic & trousers, blushing a little at the way minho watched him.  
  
“come.” he followed minho as he stepped into the basin, watching the water rise nearly to his neck when he sat down. he slipped in as well, hissing in surprise at the heat of the water, & taking a seat across from where his master now rested with his eyes closed. he folded his hands in his lap & waited. everything was new & unfamiliar this day. he had never seen minho fight & he had never seen him bathe: he wasn’t sure what his role was meant to be.  
  
“my hair.” minho spoke without opening his eyes.  
  
“my lord?”  
  
“my hair. wash it.” taemin glanced around before finding a bottle of oil at the side. he grasped it & moved towards minho before pausing. the way the basin was formed meant that it was impossible for him to get out to wash his hair. he would need to stay in the water but he would also need to find a way to reach his hair.  
  
“my lord must move so that i may attend my duties.” minho’s eyes open & he watched taemin with a frown. “there is no other way.”, taemin said, indicating with his hand the design of the bath. “perhaps my lord would like to rest against me?” moments crept by before minho sat up. he moved towards taemin who had moved to his knees, & then turned, sitting down before his slave.  
  
“i will wet my lord’s hair first.” he waited until minho nodded before filling his hands with water & pouring them gently over minho’s scalp. he repeated the action over & over until the strands were saturated & then he added a small dab of oil to his hands, rubbed them together, & then began to work them through minho’s curls. he felt more than heard his master sigh & he nearly stopped for it. but by the time he completed it was clear that what he had felt & heard had been the sound of contentment. he repeated the action of wetting his minho’s strand & then sat back when it was completed.  
  
“finished, my lord.” minho began to move when taemin pressed a hand to his shoulder, withdrawing it immediately when he realized what he had done.

“i...would my lord like for me to continue?”  
  
“continue?”  
  
“that is...i could bathe my lord.”  
  
“do you find me dirty?”  
  
“no my lord.”  
  
“even though i have fought in the dirt & sun today?” there was something in his tone that was off, something that taemin didn’t recognize coming from his master. his searched for an answer. he was still thinking when minho turned over his shoulder & smiled at him. taemin felt all the air in his lungs dissipate & the room spin of its own accord. he was staring & he knew he was staring & yet he could not stop. not even when minho laughed.  
  
“i do not wish for you to bathe me today,” he said as he moved back to his end of the bath. “only to rest with me until the water grows cold.” he leaned back & closed his eyes again. taemin sat a while on his knees before settling back down himself, drawing his legs near & resting his hands on his thighs. he tried to close his eyes but could not find it in himself to relax that far & so instead stared at the wall & thought of nothing.  
  
his hair was still wet & they both smelled of blossoms when minho took him that night.  
  
~  
  
minho began having taemin join him for his evening meals. they sat across a small table from one another in an adjacent chamber & he would use to the time to ask taemin about his day. surprised by the engagement in conversation, he didn’t know how to answer his master’s questions in a way he felt would be satisfactory so he simply told him everything they did. minho listened quietly, his eyes more often on his food rather than on taemin, & asked no further questions: night after night they would end their meal in silence.  
  
days passed & taemin began to notice all the little things about minho that had gone unobserved because he had been looking for weaknesses instead of strengths: the softness of his tone when he spoke to eunsook; the respect he showed the soldiers who served beneath him; the way no one showed fear when he passed, only deference of his authority.  
  
he didn’t fear minho either, he realized. in fact, he had grown to enjoy his company when he was allowed it. he began to ask minho questions about his own day, unsurprised when the answers were curt & undetailed. however, minho began to press taemin further about his own afternoons & soon taemin found himself with more projects & freedom with which to spend his days. they were small but significant, expanding his world beyond the confines of minho’s bed & eunsook’s room & he slowly began to forget that he had ever lived a life beyond the fortress walls.  
  
~  
  
taemin stared at the board & wished he were a better player. his comparably poor strategy when it came to the game reflected his failure to defeat minho in life. the war at play between his pieces & minho’s was a mirror image of the one they waged daily & in both cases minho was victorious.  
  
he moved his rook & groaned as his bishop was captured. he was left with a handful of pawns, his king, a knight, & the rook he’d just held in his fingers. three moves later & it was over. the oddest part of playing chess with minho was that his master insisted on saying “good game” at the end of every match & shaking his hand, as though they were equals who played because they enjoyed each other’s company & the rhythm of the game. the first time he had hesitated because he wasn’t sure if it was a trick but he’d soon learned that not only was he expected to take the proffered hand but he was to repeat the words back verbatim.  
  
minho didn’t have a lot of free time, but he truly seemed to enjoy the game despite the clear evidence that taemin was not a worthy opponent. it wasn’t taemin’s place to point such a truth out so instead he sat down whenever he was instructed & made his best attempt to prove his mettle on the wooden battlefield. now that he had lost again, he set the pieces back in their starting position as minho moved to sit behind his desk.  
  
“you don’t lose on purpose, do you?”  
  
“no, my lord,” taemin replied, not looking up, “i do not.”  
  
“you’re getting better.” he peered over the board, a knight in his hand.  
  
“am i, my lord?”  
  
“yes.” he went back to arranging the pieces.  
  
“it doesn’t feel like it, my lord.”  
  
“are you questioning me?” he looked up, eyes wide.  
  
“no!” minho raised an eyebrow as taemin caught his solecism. “no, my lord.”  
  
“come.” taemin placed the piece in his hand down on the table, the board only half-finished & walked over to where his master reclined in his sturdy leather chair. he spread his legs & taemin knelt before him, watching minho with vacant eyes who watched him back. he suddenly felt self-conscious, the urge to fidget held at bay by only the thinnest thread of self-control. there was usually a command swiftly given, no time to imagine what would be expected of him, but now he merely sat in silence, his knees pressing into the cold marble floor.  
  
minho leaned forward & hooked his fingers beneath taemin’s chin, keeping their eyes level.  
  
“you will improve.” taemin nodded, his chin gently tapping the fingers beneath.  
  
“yes, my lord.”  
  
“prepare yourself.” he nodded & rolled back onto the balls of his feet, making his way toward the small table near the massive bed where minho kept the oil he liked.  
  
“do it slowly.” he glanced back over at minho & nodded. he’d begun dressing in clothing that tied around the waist rather than those without bindings: pulling tops over his head didn’t seem to appeal to his master nearly as much as having them slide off of taemin’s shoulders. he untied the knot at his hip & let the blouse fall open, the laces hanging against his thighs. he tucked his fingers beneath the fabric just below his collarbones & let it slip off onto the floor, never breaking eye contact with his master. his pants were tied loosely at the waist & slipped softly to the floor when the knot was undone. taemin stood naked & a bit chilled, turning only long enough to pull the jar out & carry it to the bed with him, climbing atop the little divots with familiarity.  
  
“would you like me to face you or turn away, my lord?” taemin had no preference to what part of his body would be on display, minho would hear him either way.  
  
“keep your eyes on me.” taemin nodded.  
  
“yes, my lord.” he shifted his body so that he faced minho, his knees bent & thighs spread as he coated his finger & began to press in. it wouldn’t take long, it never did. minho had him too frequently for it to be much of a necessity. but he liked it when taemin was already slick & he enjoyed watching his slave break a little at the pleasure induced by his own hand. a second finger quickly joined.  
  
his legs spread a little wider as he pressed in deep, stroking against the flesh that brought him the most pleasure, staring at minho as he did. his breaths grew shallow as he grew hard & his hand began to wave in the air, desperate to bring the satisfaction of friction to his aching cock. a brusque “no” from minho forced his hand to drop to his thigh, digging his nails into the tender flesh in a desperate attempt at distraction.  
  
it was becoming unbearable, to be this aroused without being satisfied; neither allowed by his own hand nor by any movement on minho’s part. he squeezed his eyes shut. he was almost angry with how aroused he was, riding his fingers as best he could, feeling the build of pleasure at the stimulation. he was hard & leaking & bruises were beginning to form beneath his nails, his wrist cramping.  
  
“come.” he opened his eyes & looked at his master in confusion. a quirk of minho’s finger brought clarity and he slipped his fingers out, moving carefully off the bed, the marks against his thigh vivid as he took shaky steps. minho gave him a soft cloth that he wiped his fingers on as he knelt down, leaning in when minho’s firm hand pressed against the back of his head. his master was already quite hard as taemin’s shaky fingers pulled apart the buttons that held his trousers together. pressing his hands to minho’s thighs, he leaned in & took it all into his mouth in desperation, minho hissing at his enthusiasm. he wanted his master’s cock, he wanted it inside him, he wanted to be fucked: he wanted relief. a bit of panic at the thought of minho cumming in his mouth slowed him down only slightly, opening his eyes to look up at his master with a pleading gaze. minho was watching him intently, a look that taemin had learned meant that he was enjoying himself but that he was still in control. it was a look he was familiar with.  
  
“enough.” taemin pulled back immediately & sat on his heels, swallowing in anticipation. minho adjusted himself in the chair. “come.” his pants were still on, though halfway off, & he was still draped in his blouse. taemin placed a knee against minho’s thigh on either side, his legs pressing into the arms of the chair, bracing a hand against the back & taking minho in the other. he turned his head to watch, looking back as he sank down, keeping his eyes on the other man. minho’s hands were at his waist as he moved to brace his other hand against the side of the chair near minho’s face & slowly began moving his hips, a small rhythm that minho had yet to join him in, the rough texture of the trousers not wholly unfamiliar to his skin as his movements caused them to rub together.  
  
he began to move faster, desire overwhelming & after what felt to be an eternity, minho began thrusting up, deep rough strokes with his hands tight against taemin’s hips, pulling him down with each. his knuckles turned white as he gripped the leather beneath his fingers, closing his eyes & losing control over his voice, minho’s rhythmic grunting a melodious duet to his own wanton moans. he kept his hands braced as one of minho’s hands rose up to his neck to pull him in close. his open mouth was captured between minho’s lips & he willingly, desperately acquiesced to his master’s demands & allowed his tongue into his waiting mouth. it was a heavenly dance of taste & novelty: minho had only begun kissing him recently.  
  
the first time had been a surprise & taemin had the taste of his master’s lips on his mouth before he had a chance to register what was happening. he had been on his back, fingers gripping the sheets when minho had suddenly leaned forward, never stalling, & captured his lips with his own. it was neither gentle nor chaste & taemin had found himself with his fingers tangled in his master’s hair, pulling him into his mouth as minho continued to thrust into him. it was also the first time they had moved into the position taemin found himself in now: sat up in minho’s lap with their lips pressed together.  
  
he cried out into minho’s mouth when he came, already so close when minho had called him over. he groaned, his eyes squeezing shut, as his cum splattered against his waist. minho continued to thrust up into him. he kept his eyes closed & let his body shake, his nerves burning until minho’s familiar breaths shifted & he felt the warmth of the other man’s cum release inside him.  
  
he opened his eyes, catching his breath, watching minho in this moment of vulnerability, the soldier’s hand still at his neck, a bit painful as he’d gripped him through his orgasm.  
  
a sudden urge to kiss him again caught him by surprise. he wasn’t sure if he was allowed the privilege of engaging in contact he had not been directly commanded. but it seemed worth the risk & so he leaned in & brushed his lips against his master’s. minho’s eyes opened & they watched each other in surprise. minho was still inside him, still had his hand at taemin’s neck & taemin was still naked & sweaty, fingers digging into the leather of the chair, barely holding himself up by quickly weakening arms.  
  
as the silence dragged on, punctuated only by their breaths, his eyes slowly widened as the full depth of what he had done began dawning on him.  
  
“apologies, my lord. i forgot my place.” the silence continued to tick by & he began to shake with trepidation & from the chill of the air as his damp body began to cool. to his surprise, minho leaned up & repeated the action taemin had taken moments ago, a soft brushing of lips that was too tender for their relationship, too chaste but that felt right in the moment.  
  
“up.”, came his soft order & taemin lifted himself off of minho’s lap, rising onto his knees & pressing one unsteady foot after the other onto the cold marble. he remained before his master, waiting for another command, hoping that he wouldn’t be sent away, dismissed as though nothing had happened. he watched as minho buttoned his pants back up & slipped his soiled blouse over his head, his abdominal muscles flexing with the movement. he wanted to feel those muscles beneath his fingers.  
  
he took the cloth that taemin had wiped his fingers on, folded it in half, & wiped the mess off of taemin’s chest with his own hand, taemin’s heart fluttering at the touch. when minho looked up there was a softness to his gaze that taemin had never seen before.  
  
“get dressed. we will start again.” he gestured to the chess board in disarray, the briefest of smiles flittering across his lips & taemin nodded before turning to cross the room, smiling as he bound himself up again in fabric.  
  
“the king’s son has returned. there will be a feast tonight. you will come.” taemin turned back, his eyes wide. the look on minho’s face brokered no argument so he only nodded as the sudden threat of detection made him dizzy.  
  
~  
  
the grand hall was dimly lit with chandeliers & candles, the soft strumming of an unseen harp the backdrop to the celebration. the prince was toasted & a small speech made & the crowd cheered as princess junghee kissed her brother on the cheek. the familiarity of a royal banquet felt like a dream, a hazy memory of a life he had existed in before he had begun living in seclusion with only eunsook for companionship during the day while his nights were spent as a slave in minho’s bed. he stood behind his master quietly, a display without purpose as he was not allowed to serve either food or drink. he fought the urge to tap his feet & held his head up as confidently as he could.  
  
he felt eyes on him & he glanced around, attempting to locate the source & finding himself the recipient of the returned prince’s gaze. a smile formed on the other’s lips when he saw that he had been caught staring. taemin frowned & his stomach tightened at the expression on the other’s face. he turned away & licked his lips & took a deep breath. prince jonghyun was one of very few who might recognize taemin for what he was & while minho seemed to have not there was no mistaking the knowing glint in his eye. more than once he again caught the prince watching him throughout the evening, a look of satisfaction & a hint of desire, one that caused a shiver to travel down his spine. he was owned by the king’s right hand & he believed in minho’s integrity enough to trust that his master would not willingly allow another to have him, however he wasn’t certain minho had enough standing to protect him from royalty.  
  
the banquet went on for hours, the members of the court growing progressively louder & more aggressive in their pursuit of the pleasure slaves that surrounded the room. many of them disappeared with varying looks of anticipation & taemin was one of only a few that remained as the evening drew to a close; one of the few present who belonged to a master who would not trade them in celebration.  
  
minho turned to him.  
  
“i will speak to the king. wait for me in my chambers. minjung will escort you.” taemin nodded & minho beckoned the soldier who then guided taemin through the unfamiliar halls of the palace to the room that had been set aside for minho as the king’s right hand. minjung was as kind as ever, opening the door for taemin & wishing him a good night before pulling it shut. the room was much larger than the one minho kept at his fortress, far more ornate in both design & decor. gold & crimson & heavy wood: the weight of wealth was felt throughout.  
  
there was a knock at the door & taemin was on his knees before he realized that his master would have no reason take such an action. unsure of how to respond he stood & said nothing, waiting for the sound to resume. another knock at the door as it opened, a smiling prince entering the room. taemin was so stunned that he nearly forgot himself, fighting instinct & kneeling again in the presence of royalty.  
  
“your highness.”  
  
“ah, now is this any way for a prince to address his peer?” taemin swallowed & kept his eyes to the ground.  
  
“i am sure i do not know what you mean your highness.”  
  
“i am sure minho does not either.” at the mention of his master’s name taemin’s eyes rose & he found himself beneath a leering gaze that made his blood run cold. “should i tell him?”  
  
“he is aware.”, taemin lied, hoping that his statement rang truer in jonghyun’s ears than it did in his own.  
  
“of course he is not. why do you lie?” taemin remained silent, begging minho to return & regretting that minjung knew that he was alone with the prince. jonghyun tilted his head to the side with a small smile. “what would he think if he knew that my little gift was so much more than he thought? would fucking the son of a fallen enemy bring him joy or disgust?” he leaned down & taemin felt the breath of his words blow across his face. “a royal whore. a gift better suited for a prince than a soldier, do you not think?” he stood, still smiling. “enjoy your evening.”  
  
he turned then, walking towards the door, & leaving without a look back.  
  
taemin stayed on his knees, shaking, his heart beating erratically. when minho returned he searched his face for any hint of new knowledge, terrified that he might now know. there was nothing there. the same placid expression he always held sat across his gaze as he looked down at taemin & bid him to undress. despite his best attempts the words “royal whore” echoed in his ears as he braced on his elbows & knees on minho’s bed, his body shuddering as his master thrust into him from behind, & he too began to wonder what minho would think if he knew who he had in his bed.  
  
a week passed with no further visits from the prince.  
  
~  
  
taemin rested a moment on his stomach, swallowing heavily as he caught his breath. minho had been unusually enthusiastic that evening & taemin had spent more time on his knees bracing against the sheets than he was accustomed to. he pushed himself up on unsteady feet, the familiar sensation of minho’s cum oozing down the inside of his thigh. he bent to pick up his trousers left unceremoniously on the floor, pulled off by minho’s hungry fingers in a rush rather than the usual smooth motion of taemin’s own hand.  
  
“leave them.”, minho’s voice ordered from the other side of the room. taemin stood & looked back over his shoulder, turning to face his master with a tired face. he didn’t question the command or comment on it, choosing instead to remain immobile until he was given further direction. in contrast to his own naked state, minho had pulled on his trousers & now stood shifting papers & opening drawers at his desk, the muscles in his abdomen, chest, & arms flexing with every movement & taemin swallowed back the familiar heat that built every time he was allowed to see his master’s naked form. he was allowed the sight so infrequently that the lust he felt hit hard every time.  
  
he waited patiently, silently, until minho finally found what he was looking for. he grabbed a pen & scratched out a note on a piece of paper, strode across the room, & then handed it to the guard just outside the door. the thud of the heavy door as it closed again echoed in the open chamber & taemin kept his eyes on minho as he walked back to him. he stopped abruptly before him, his hands in the air but not touching taemin’s skin. he seemed hesitant which was confusing: his master was not known for being indecisive & taemin himself had never experienced anything but firm determination while in his presence.  
  
he reached up & tucked a loose strand of hair behind taemin’s ear.  
  
“i would like you to stay the night & i would like you to feel free to decline. there will be no repercussions if you prefer to sleep in your own bed.” it was a startling request. it was true that they had grown closer & that his input had been asked for more & more, but they had all been small & insignificant things. he swallowed, thinking. belatedly, it occurred to him that his delay could be interpreted as hesitation & so he quickly replied, “if it pleases my lord.” minho closed his eyes & sighed, turning away.  
  
to his own surprise, taemin caught his arm & held it.  
  
“yes.” they stood at an impasse watching each other warily, uncertain now what steps to take as an unfamiliar threshold had been crossed. there was a freedom he was being allowed, a trust that the most powerful warrior in the kingdom was bestowing on him.  
  
he realized that he had been holding minho’s arm far longer than was appropriate & immediately pulled his hand away, letting it fall to his side. minho’s hand mimicked his slave’s movements.  
  
he smiled when he awoke the next morning with minho’s arm around his waist.  
  
~  
  
“he let me stay the night.”  
  
“what?”  
  
“lord minho allowed me to stay the night. in his bed.” she smiled, a little laugh breaking through.  
  
“that is wonderful.  
  
~  
  
it was unusual for anyone other than minjung to escort him to & from eunsook’s chamber, though a guard named changmin had a time or two. this guard, however, was unfamiliar to taemin. when asked by eunsook where taemin’s regular escort was he bristled & said that it was none of her concern, that he was doing his duty & that she should attend to her own. she pursed her lips & frowned.  
  
taemin walked ahead of the guard, something he wasn’t accustomed to, minjung typically walking beside him & speaking to him freely. the silence from the stranger was unsettling. they arrived at the chamber doors & taemin looked at the guard who only stared back, not leading him inside as every other escort had. he pulled the heavy door himself & stepped inside, expecting his master to be waiting. to his surprise minho was not in the room. he had never been left alone anywhere so freely before & he didn’t know what to do, clapping his hands nervously as he looked around. that’s when he caught sight of the prince in his master’s chair with the same smile he had laid upon taemin weeks earlier after the banquet held in his honor.  
  
this time taemin didn’t bow.  
  
“hello taemin.”  
  
“your highness.”  
  
“tsk. are we still pretending to be a simple slave? come now, we are equals. we should address each other as such.”  
  
“my master will be here soon.”  
  
“no, he will not. your master is busy.”, jonghyun said as he stood, coming out from behind the desk. “and we have matters to discuss.”  
  
“such as?”, taemin asked, hoping his voice sounded sturdier to the prince’s ears than to his own.  
  
“have you not heard? the king, your father, has died.” the world went very still & taemin could feel his nerves tingle at the words.  
  
“you lie.”  
  
“i assure you it is the truth. your brother should be arriving soon, taking your father’s place in the negotiations.”  
  
“what does that have to do with me?” jonghyun narrowed his eyes & smiled.  
  
“perhaps nothing. but your brother owes me something, something very important. & i think you are the perfect one to remind him of his debt.” the prince stepped forward, reaching up & brushing the back of a hand against taemin’s cheek. taemin pulled away only to have his wrist caught in the other’s grip, his shirt unbound & half off before he could protest.  
  
“no!”, he cried as he angrily fought to free his arm, “stop!” he broke free & stumbled backward, his back hitting a wall & he watched in terror at the smile that spread over jonghyun's face: a predator capturing his prey. the prince had him caged in, one hand pressed against the wall beside taemin’s head & the other tangling in his hair & pulling him flush against his body.  
  
“perhaps now your brother will listen.”  
  
jonghyun’s lips were on his & he could feel the press of a tongue against their seam when suddenly there was a flash of a knife & jonghyun fell to the floor, blood pulsing from his neck. minho stood above him, staring at him passively, glancing at taemin briefly, his eyes raking over the clothing he gripped to his body & his mussed hair. he watched, terrified: he had neither heard nor seen his master arrive.  
  
"are you harmed?" taemin just stared at him, gasping & shivering violently. it was enough for minho who nodded & kicked jonghyun's head, knocking him unconscious.  
  
"come." he stretched out a palm that taemin's shaky hand accepted & he stepped around the prone body on the floor with wide eyes. gwiboon & minjung were in the hallway & they were given instructions in minho's deep voice, their eyes glancing only briefly at taemin's disheveled appearance. they disappeared into the bedroom & emerged with jonghyun, his neck now wrapped in one of their capes & a welt forming on his cheek. taemin cast his eyes to the ground, keeping himself as small & submissive as possible.  
  
"thank you.", he whispered.  
  
"don't thank me when i do my duties", minho said without looking. "thank me when i perform a kindness." he turned then, his eyes dark. "in other words, never thank me."  
  
he was left to spend the night alone & minjung came to get him the next morning, minho never coming to his door.  
  
eunsook was waiting for him anxiously when he arrived & he could tell she had been told of the previous night’s incident by the way she grabbed him by the shoulders & searched his body for wounds.  
  
“i am fine, i assure you.”  
  
“are you certain?” her eyes continued to travel his body & the terror on her face was too much to bear. he lifted his hands to her face & stared into her eyes.  
  
“yes.” she watched him for a moment before grabbing him by the waist & holding him close. her shoulders began to shake & he realized that she was crying.  
  
they were playing cards & taemin had a winning hand, a smile on his face as he prepared to lay it down. eunsook was the first to notice a presence at the door & she stood as minho’s voice spoke “come.” from the doorway. taemin looked up at his master’s voice & stood immediately. minho opened his mouth to speak then paused, raking his eyes over taemin’s near-naked form: loose, sheer blouse & pants, clothing easily removed by nimble fingers yet keeping his body covered from prying eyes.  
  
“dress him.” eunsook glanced between them & taemin felt the sting of not being directly addressed.  
  
“how so my lord?” minho’s eyes narrowed & taemin swallowed.  
  
“for battle.”  
  
taemin stood in an empty courtyard, clearly designed for practice with a wooden plank in his hands. eunsook had dressed him in leather pants & vest, heavy boots unnatural against his feet that so often went bare. everything felt so heavy.  
  
minho was identically dressed with the absence of a shirt, his defined muscles flexing with every move & taemin found it hard to keep his eyes on his master’s face.  
  
“have you ever sparred?” taemin nodded.  
  
“yes my lord.”  
  
“with whom?”  
  
“my brother.” he saw the faintest twitch of something pass over minho’s face, something akin to regret.  
  
“a fighter?” taemin stood a little taller at the query, thinking of jongin.  
  
“a true warrior.” he kept his gaze steady. they both knew a challenge had been made in that little statement.  
  
“well then. defend yourself.”  
  
their dance was fluid & taemin felt muscles that had lain dormant for the last months stretch & burn as they were being reborn. minho’s face was unreadable & it crossed taemin’s mind that he could be killed in this fight. he blocked the blows as they fell in succession, ducking & bracing his dull weapon against the one in minho’s hand. every bit of frustration he had held so tight melted into his veins & beat into his heart, thumping to his fingertips that took the weapon he held & smashed it against his master’s side, surprising him. within seconds he was empty-handed, back pressed into the dirt with the soldier’s fighting stick braced against his chest, minho staring down at him.  
  
“a true slave would never attack their master.”  
  
“i was following my master’s orders.”  
  
“no. your order was to defend yourself, not to attack. who are you?”  
  
“i am yours.” the statement had a double-meaning & taemin hoped his already flushed appearance would hide any blush his traitorous cheeks would try to reveal. minho’s eyes narrowed.  
  
a sudden commotion beyond the walls drew his attention, his weapon pressing harder into taemin’s chest as minho looked about to determine its source. a soldier appeared above them & called down that “the prince from the north has arrived”. minho’s mouth pressed into a line & he nodded to the soldier who swiftly retreated, before turning back to his slave. he saw the way that minho looked at him, appraisingly, & he wondered what the expected response of a slave from his homeland would be at the news of their leader entering the country they now resided in. he knew that he must look pale from the way his skin tingled, the cold sting of apprehension. he kept his face neutral & his eyes on his master & waited. minho was silent as he pulled taemin off the ground.  
  
~  
  
taemin woke to a soft breath against his cheek & a familiar voice murmuring his name. his eyes opened upon the wall he had faced when he fell asleep, the breath now at his neck. he turned quickly, startled by the intrusion.  
  
“hello your highness.” a thin woman crouched beside his bed, her back pressed against the wall. they were in the room he had spent so many nights, locked away within its narrow confines. there had been a shift in the way minho looked at him after their dual in the yard. he had been taken on his knees & then shut away with the familiar click of a lock. how then his brother’s bodyguard had gained entry he had no immediate idea, though he knew that if any would have found a way through the barred windows above it would have been she.  
  
“taeyeon.” he kept his voice steady, pausing in a half-risen position & waiting for clues. they had been close as children but grew apart as they aged. & it had been months since they had lain eyes on one another, a lifetime of change lay between them.  
  
“you look well.”, she said with a smile that would have passed for kind if he did not know her temperament better.  
  
warily he responded, “i am.”  
  
“lord minho seems well also.” her smile remained & taemin’s heart beat quickened. “perhaps you have just been waiting for the right time?” taemin nodded mutely. “it is now.” she pulled out an ornate blade in a golden case from behind her back & placed it in taemin’s hand. he pulled it out of its sheath, the knife glinting in the light & the faintest touch enough for him to be sure of its deadly power, a sliver of blood blooming across his fingertip. he stared at it before slipping it back into its encasement, keeping his eyes on the weapon.  
  
“why did you not do it yourself when you entered the fortress?”  
  
“lord minho is not here.” he looked up, confused.  
  
“what?”  
  
“he is at the king’s castle.” she leaned in, her eyes narrowing though her smile never wavered. “he could hardly be found murdered on the very night the prince arrived now could he?”  
  
“what would you have me do?” she leaned back.  
  
“you must kill him. when he returns to you.” taemin nodded, thinking.  
  
“he is a skilled warrior. he would sense me & i would be dead before i could even take a step.” taeyeon’s raised an eyebrow.  
  
“that sounds like praise.” taemin swallowed.  
  
“it is the truth.”  
  
“a distraction will be provided. you have a consort now. here.” she reached out her hand & taemin relinquished it into her grasp. she tucked it back where she had pulled it from. “your brother will visit lord minho’s chambers tonight. when his attention is fully on the prince, pull it out & attack. it will be waiting for you in the alcove beside the table where lord minho keeps his oils.” her eyes opened playfully & taemin nodded again, blushing. a thought nagged at the back of his mind that he let swirl through his thoughts. he was still nodding when he realized that taeyeon had disappeared.  
  
minho did not come for him until after evening meal. he spent the day in his room with meals brought by minjung & her sympathetic smile. the arrival of his master had him on his knees at the end of his bed as his door opened. he waited for a command that never came & minho, bared down to his trousers, walked away from him after scowling down at his prone form. he waited silently, watching & listening to the sounds of minho as he moved through the room: the rustle of papers & the scratch of a pen. he had not been at it long before there was a knock on the door & he watched as minho looked up & said “enter”.  
  
minjung stepped in, closing the door behind her.  
  
“prince kibum is on his way, sir. lady gwiboon is leading him & he will be here within moments.” minho nodded & turned back to his papers, still dressed only in his trousers.  
  
another knock & the door opened again, a pair of footsteps crossing the marble floor.  
  
“his highness prince kibum wishes to address you, sir.” gwiboon’s tone was calm & professional but he could hear a thread of underlying irritation.  
  
“of course.” the door closed & the sound of footsteps had been reduced to one as whom he presumed to be his brother stepped further into the room.  
  
“your highness.”, minho said, a bit stiffly.  
  
“lord minho.” minho glanced at taemin who looked down at the ground, still kneeling just inside his doorway.  
  
“what brings you to my bed chamber at this hour, your highness?”  
  
“i have come to see your slave.” out of the corner of his eye, taemin could see minho’s spine stiffen.  
  
“may i ask why?”  
  
“many of my people now reside in this kingdom. i feel it is my duty to speak with as many as i can while i am here, be certain that they are well.”  
  
minho nodded, moving between the prince & his slave, standing just off to the side to keep his presence known but not too close as to interfere.  
  
“come.” taemin stood on shaky legs at the command & slowly stepped off the soft carpet out onto the cool marble. he kept his eyes to the ground as he bowed. he glanced at minho who was keeping his eyes on kibum & he wondered how long he would have to wait for the distraction he was promised.  
  
he didn’t actually hear their conversation, didn’t notice that they had moved in the room & that he now stood next to the alcove where taeyeon had said she would hide the knife. he hears “now!” & on instinct he obeyed.  
  
it happens swiftly. taemin has the blade against minho’s throat so quickly even he doesn’t realize what is happening. his blood runs cold & he feels dizzy. he shakes because he knows that there’s no way that minho didn’t sense him, there’s no way that he should be alive now, that minho could break his hold at any second. it frightens him that he hasn’t. almost as much as the realization he had come to when taeyeon had visited him in the night.  
  
“why aren’t you fighting?”, he whispered.  
  
“we all have our secrets your highness.” taemin’s eyes widen in confusion.  
  
“you knew?”  
  
“no.” he was watching taemin placidly, that blank stare that held so much more now that taemin knew him intimately. the pieces were falling into place & the question on the tip of his tongue needed to be asked now that his secret was known by the one he had hoped never would.  
  
“how did you know i was here, kibum?” taemin asked, his face scrunched up in anger & confusion.  
  
“what?”  
  
“how did you know i was here?”  
  
“what does it matter? finish it!” taemin’s eyes never left minho’s which were calm & focused & he felt his resolve harden. if his brother weren’t at his back he would have dropped the knife by now. as it was...  
  
“how did you know?!”  
  
“he sent you here.” minho’s voice was heavy.  
  
“no.” he hadn’t expected to confess but the truth escaped anyhow. “no one sent me. & i told no one of my plan.”  
  
“you discussed it with him.”  
  
“only in the abstract. the choice was mine.”  
  
“the abstract was enough for him to discover your plans. he notified the prince of your intentions. the prince sent you to me.”  
  
“why?”  
  
“so many questions.”, came kibum’s derisive voice, the tone he usually reserved for enemies & one taemin had never had directed towards himself. it was humiliating & terrifying to receive it now: he knew what his brother was capable of. “what of it soldier? i suppose you have figured it out.”  
  
minho’s gaze broke for a moment, just long enough to glower at the prince standing across the room. when he looked back at taemin it was with broken eyes, a truth that he knew but didn’t want to reveal. he was about to break his slave’s heart.  
  
“they needed you gone. if the favorite son of the king was found a slave in the bed of the enemy’s right hand the people would decry you as a traitor & he could assume the throne.”  
  
“i am the youngest son, i do not stand to be the heir.”  
  
“you are the youngest son of of the queen, you are not the youngest son of the king.”  
  
“our succession laws allow for bastards.”  
  
“not ones that have betrayed their country for profit. he is the reason your kingdom lost the war.”  
  
taemin’s eyes widened. of everything he had ever thought or believed about his master “deceiver” had never been among them. he turned to find kibum’s lips set into a bitter frown, the hatred burning in his gaze.  
  
“so very, very smart.”  
  
“but...they would know that i was a slave.”, taemin murmured, his eyes still on his brother.  
  
“they would know that you entered the enemy’s land. they would only need the hint of your willful entrance to piece together a story that would make you a villain.”  
  
“you can come back home, brother. finish this & you will be a hero.”  
  
“what home? our father is dead & jinki lives with jongin.” kibum’s eyes narrowed & he moved a hand that had been resting on his hip to the small of his back. without blinking taemin spun & threw his knife into his brother’s shoulder, running after it before kibum had a chance to pull it out. it was embedded deep & the prince had been too stunned to do anything but fall backward to the floor. taemin wrenched it out with full force, the blood pouring out of the wound a second thought as he placed the blade he had held to his master’s throat against that of his brother’s.  
  
“after all that i have sacrificed you would pull a blade on me, brother?! i lost the only man i ever loved to your lies! a hero, kibum? you have ensured my life as a slave!”  
  
“taemin.” minho’s careful voice came from behind & the blinding fury coursing through taemin’s veins softened slightly at the sound: the first time his master had called him by name. “do not do this. it cannot be undone.”  
  
“he deserves to die.”  
  
“perhaps, yes. but you do not deserve to have his blood on your hands.” minho’s strong hand rested lightly on his shoulder & taemin shook with rage, staring down at the terror in his betrayer’s eyes.  
  
“i would be like you.”  
  
silence.  
  
“don’t be.” taemin took a few ragged breaths, his muscles aching with the desire for bloody revenge. finally, he nodded & rose up, keeping his blade to the offender’s throat until the last moment. his brother wasn’t going anywhere; his arm lay limp at his side. he wanted to kiss minho, he wanted to stay, wanted to see. but he knew it would be better if he knew no details, if he was left to his imagination & not vivid memories.  
  
“go.” obeying minho’s orders was second nature by now & he followed them easily, slipping out of the bedroom without thought, passing the guards in the hall, & taking the steps down the hallway that led him to the familiarity of eunsook’s room. she glanced up from her book, dropping it as she rushed toward him, her hands at his shoulders & he realized then that he must have his brother’s blood on his body.  
  
“i would like a bath please.”  
  
taemin lay submerged in the scalding water staring blankly at the wall. eunsook sat just in the other room, the door slightly ajar: he hadn’t missed the anxious way she kept glancing at his face. there was so much to understand that he never would, even though minho clearly did. sterile explanations would never clarify how a brother could have hated him so greatly & taemin never noticed. he rubbed at the mark on his wrist absently.  
  
there were murmurs outside the door & the soft click of the outer door being shut & then minho was in the bathing room with him. he watched as minho silently undressed, slipping into the water with taemin. he leaned in & kissed his slave, stroking his sides with calloused hands before bringing them up to cup his face. he slipped his tongue into taemin’s mouth & he sucked it in eagerly, relishing the touch & placing his own soft fingers at his master’s firm waist. he followed minho’s lead as the soldier leaned back, pulling taemin into his lap, growing hard in the water. taemin pulled away long enough to guide him inside then leaned forward again, his hands dancing over minho’s shoulders, neck, chest, pulling his head tight as minho began to suck at his neck & shoulders. he bounced his hips as minho thrust up, little waves splashing around them & the sounds of their breaths & soft moans echoing through the steamy room. it wouldn’t be enough for minho, taemin knew, but it was enough for now & he moved his body in the way that minho liked, groaning as his master’s teeth scraped against his chest as he came inside his slave.  
  
~  
  
“is he dead?”  
  
“no.”  
  
“what will you do with him?”  
  
“it is up to the king.”  
  
“he will listen to you.”  
  
“perhaps.”  
  
he wanted to press further, wanted to know if minho would be able to protect him if he were to be found out. but he was too afraid of the answer to ask the question, he’d rather wrap himself up in hope than be forced into the cold of truth. instead he slipped his arms around minho’s waist, resting his head against his master’s chest, & listened to the thump of his heart.

the executions were public & taemin stood with eunsook in the box seating set aside for the slaves of the king’s guards. she held his hand as the man she knew only as his former prince stepped atop the same stage that her own stood upon already. they were dressed in simple garments, black tunics & trousers with bare feet, their heads shaved & their arms bound. he did not know jonghyun’s mind but he knew kibum’s & for his brother these last moments so bared down must be the highest of insults.  
  
it was clear that they had been in some way drugged, too silent & complacent for their position upon the plank. the crowd was silent, trained to be so in the presence of the king, & the condemned men mimicked their silence with their own closed mouths.  
  
he would wonder later just how much danger his brother understood taemin to have been put in, if he knew the kind of man jonghyun was. if he cared at all. he may not have intended that taemin would end a slave in his enemy’s bed, but it had not been a possibility that he warned taemin of or had taken steps to prevent. even discovering his brother’s position had not phased the prince at all; his thirst for revenge was greater than his regret at what taemin’s life had presumably become. would he then care if his comrade-in-arms took taemin against his will? he had risked a lot by sharing taemin’s identity with the prince. but every consequence would have fallen solely on the younger brother’s head.  
  
for now, he stood still, his head high & his breaths even, eunsook’s soft hand in his own as the executioner, at the king’s command, moved to the center of the platform. the king sat in a box to the right of taemin, directly across the stage & at its level. the queen & her consorts sat in a box to the side while minho & jongin flanked the king. it was a bold choice for jongin to allow kibum’s execution in enemy land, a concession towards a monarchy that had defeated them in battle but who had lost just as much in a war neither leader knew they were fighting.  
  
the king & the prince watched with stoic faces as their son & brother, respectively, were executed before their eyes. it was quick & clean & the only sounds were of birds flitting through the air that had no comprehension of what they had just witnessed. the king made a brief speech that taemin could not understand through the ringing in his ears. the threat had ended, yes, but he had never seen another person die. he was reminded of the life minho had led before him, that his master was a soldier & a warrior. he could not imagine the things minho must have witnessed in his life, the actions he must have taken, the blood that was on his hands. he gripped his fists & wondered.  
  
~  
  
he had been waiting on his knees when his master had arrived & had found himself pulled from the ground in a rush of strength. minho had taemin in his arms, bruising kisses against his lips & his hands making quick work of the loose tunic on taemin’s shoulders when there was a knock at the door & gwiboon entered.  
  
“prince jongin would like to see you, my lord. i suggest you prepare yourself.”, she said, looking at them pointedly. taemin had barely tied his shirt back in place when there was another knock at the door & the prince’s presence was announced by one of his own guards.  
  
the prince strode directly inside, a stern gaze fixed on minho’s face.  
  
“i would speak to you alone, lord minho. i feel that it is best”, he glanced at taemin before again meeting the soldier’s eyes, “if what we are about to discuss was done so in private.” minho nodded as the prince dismissed his guards, the thud of the door echoing in the room.  
  
jongin’s cursory glance around his master’s chambers did not go unnoticed & taemin’s heart beat a bit faster at what his brother might think of what he saw, remembering the finery of their own palace & knowing that what they stood in today was not half as grand.  
  
“our brother kibum...acted alone. i would like to believe that my word on this matter would be enough for you to trust it’s veracity. however, recent events have proven to us all that words are hollow & actions speak much louder. the betrayal of our two princes, to the point of the loss of a king, is too great an example of how little we might know those closest to us so i will not begrudge any doubt you may hold. i hope, instead, to prove myself in the coming days.  
  
“indeed, there are matters of state that will need to be discussed directly with the king. the loss of an heir & the discovery of his own son’s treachery may be a common ground on which we can forge a new relationship. only time will tell, but it is enough, i hope, to begin communications.”  
  
“jonghyun was as beloved as your brother. his treachery is not so surprising to those who knew him well. his sister will be a far better heir to the throne than he. princess junghee has always been kind & wise, an open ear to the thoughts of the people & far more inclined for harmony than conflict.”  
  
“i truly hope so.” he looked at taemin now, a mix of sadness & resolve in his gaze. “brother.” taemin swallowed at the familiar words & remained placid under his younger sibling’s warm gaze.  
  
“your highness.” jongin’s smile faltered but he pressed on.  
  
“you look well.” taemin nodded.  
  
“as do you.”  
  
the prince stepped forward with open arms, pausing halfway. “may i?” taemin laughed.  
  
“the prince is asking a slave permission?”  
  
“a younger brother is asking to be held by the only brother he has left.” taemin’s smile softened as he took jongin into his arms. they stood there a moment, brothers reunited in a foreign land. jongin pulled away first, taking a step back with his palms pressed against taemin’s shoulders.  
  
“i swear i had nothing to do with the plot & did not find out in time to stop anything. i would take you back, brother, i would. how i wish it were possible. but we know now that it is not. kibum wove a thread of lies that cannot be unraveled. your own actions have made you complicit with his & there is no way for you to return safely. i could not guarantee you would survive even the trip.”  
  
“do your people think so lowly of your status?”, came minho’s piercing voice. taemin cringed.  
  
“yes.”, jongin said, turning towards minho. “how could they not after what has transpired? yet i am the last child of either king or queen: there is no one left in line. i was not bred for leadership & they allow me to rule at this time only at the queen’s behest.” he turned back to taemin whose heart burned at the mention of his mother.  
  
“she believes in your innocence but she has resolved herself to your loss. i believe she keeps me in status as a way of keeping the memory of you close. we are all we each have left of you.”  
  
“and jinki.” jongin grew stiff, defensive. “you have each other.” the air between them turned cold & something in jongin’s eyes flickered: guilt.  
  
“i would not have traded your life away for him. he would never have forgiven me.”  
  
“is he happy?”  
  
“he is safe.” if taemin had listened only to the words the distinction would have been keenly felt. as it was, jongin’s eyes & tone betrayed him & taemin knew his feelings were being spared.  
  
“that is good.”  
  
“taemin will be safe as well, your highness.” he suddenly remembered that his master stood in the room with them & he turned to see his face. his expression was placid, as was common, though he feared he saw something new in his eye.  
  
“that is good. he is quite dear to me & i regret that the greed of two men will now break our bond of brotherhood. but i am glad that he will have your protection. we may never be friends ourselves, lord minho. however, you have proven yourself an honorable man & i will hold you to your word.” minho bowed.  
  
“this is good-bye, brother.” jongin’s voice was not as strong as his stance & his eyes glistened in a way that was reminiscent of their youth. it broke taemin’s heart to see his kind, sensitive brother, one who was so close to his age & yet so much younger, be forced under the mantle of authority he was not prepared to carry. their roles were so reversed & inversed & in every way changed now. he had no right to as a slave but as an elder brother he stepped forward & took the prince into his arms, propping his head on the younger man’s shoulder as the other tried unsuccessfully not to cry, gripping taemin close. he felt the tears prick at his own eyes & he blinked them back rapidly because he would have time for them later: right now he needed to be a strength to the boy he had loved who was now a man about to be a king.  
  
he pulled away first, pressing his hands to jongin’s shoulders & waiting for the prince to regain his composure. his brother wiped his tears with his fingers, a childish behavior at odds with his status that he knew his mother would soon rid him of. he would receive wise counsel from her.  
  
“listen to the queen”, he said, smiling encouragingly, “& to the generals & to the people. listen to them all & then decide for yourself. do not let yourself get swept up in the passions of anger or greed. you are a good man, brother. you have always been the best of us.”  
  
he leaned in again & held his brother in his arms, stroking his hair. there was one last thing he needed to say but he needed it spoken softly so that his master might not hear.  
  
“jongin.”  
  
“yes?”  
  
“it is alright that you love jinki. i am glad of it.”  
  
the door closed & they were again alone.  
  
~  
  
“i would not have traded your life away for him. he would never have forgiven me.”  
  
“is he happy?”  
  
“he is safe.” if taemin had listened only to the words the distinction would have been keenly felt. as it was, jongin’s eyes & tone betrayed him & taemin knew his feelings were being spared.  
  
“that is good.”  
  
“taemin will be safe as well, your highness.” he suddenly remembered that his master stood in the room with them & he turned to see his face. his expression was placid, as was common, though he feared he saw something new in his eye.  
  
“that is good. he is quite dear to me & i regret that the greed of two men will now break our bond of brotherhood. but i am glad that he will have your protection. we may never be friends ourselves, lord minho. however, you have proven yourself an honorable man & i will hold you to your word.” minho bowed.  
  
“this is good-bye, brother.” jongin’s voice was not as strong as his stance & his eyes glistened in a way that was reminiscent of their youth. it broke taemin’s heart to see his kind, sensitive brother, one who was so close to his age & yet so much younger, be forced under the mantle of authority he was not prepared to carry. their roles were so reversed & inversed & in every way changed now. he had no right to as a slave but as an elder brother he stepped forward & took the prince into his arms, propping his head on the younger man’s shoulder as the other tried unsuccessfully not to cry, gripping taemin close. he felt the tears prick at his own eyes & he blinked them back rapidly because he would have time for them later: right now he needed to be a strength to the boy he had loved who was now a man about to be a king.  
  
he pulled away first, pressing his hands to jongin’s shoulders & waiting for the prince to regain his composure. his brother wiped his tears with his fingers, a childish behavior at odds with his status that he knew his mother would soon rid him of. he would receive wise counsel from her.  
  
“listen to the queen”, he said, smiling encouragingly, “& to the generals & to the people. listen to them all & then decide for yourself. do not let yourself be swept up in the passions of anger or greed. you are a good man, brother. you have always been the best of us.”  
  
he leaned in again & held his brother in his arms, stroking his hair. there was one last thing he needed to say but he needed it spoken softly so that his master might not hear.  
  
“jongin.”  
  
“yes?”  
  
“it is alright that you love jinki. i am glad of it.”  
  
the door closed & they were again alone.  
  
~  
  
the silence burned in the air against taemin’s skin. minho had said that he would be safe & now that the threat from the princes were no more perhaps he would be. he was too afraid to ask before but he has his answer now, yet turning back to where his master stood behind him he was unsettled to see the way minho was watching him. he began to step towards him, to continue what they had been in the midst of when his brother had arrived.  
  
“stop.” the command was cold & abrupt & he froze in his steps. “we have much to discuss.”  
  
“yes, my lord.”  
  
“speak plainly, taemin,” minho said as he crossed his arms over his chest. “there is too much to be said to wrap our words up in formalities.”  
  
“yes my...” taemin paused, unnerved by his name being spoken again. “yes.”  
  
“jinki.” taemin flinched, the name so foreign on his master’s tongue. “was he your mate or your slave?”  
  
“slave,” taemin answered slowly, “a gift when i came of age.”  
  
“ah. you loved him?” the words cut like a twist of a knife & he wished then for the blade he had thrown into his brother’s chest: it would have hurt far less.  
  
“yes.” his voice was a whisper in the air between them.  
  
“you believe he loved you?”  
  
“i...” he hadn’t been with minho nearly as long as jinki had been with him & he had treated jinki in a far more affectionate & familiar manner than minho had treated him. he understood now, however, how many complications lay in the relationship between a slave & their master. even if jinki had loved him what would it mean when ultimately it would not have mattered if he hadn’t: he still would belong to taemin. “i do not know.”  
  
“that is the burden of the holder, never knowing the true thoughts of the ones who share our beds. too much to lose for them to risk the truth.”  
  
“he had no reason to fear me,” he replied defensively, “i was kind.”  
  
“you gave him to your brother.”  
  
“to protect him.”  
  
“you would not have done so otherwise?”  
  
“no.”  
  
“then now you understand our relationship.”  
  
“...you have been protecting me.”  
  
“a master has a responsibility to their slave.”  
  
“slaves are to serve their masters.” minho shifted & his eyes narrowed.  
  
“but you are not a slave are you? a ‘royal whore’ as jonghyun said.” taemin stared at him, angry at both himself & his master.  
  
“how long have you known?”  
  
“since jonghyun told me.”  
  
“how long had you suspected?”  
  
“i knew you were a trap from the moment jonghyun sent you to me.”  
  
“but you kept me.”  
  
“i kept you safe.” his look is pointed & taemin doesn’t understand, his head shaking in confusion. “from the moment i saw you,” minho continued, “i knew that you were disposable to him. i didn’t know what he intended for you, but i knew you needed to be protected.  
  
“that is why your days are spent with eunsook. she may seem gentle but if it were allowed she would be commander of us all. had i not battled her myself i would have thought gwiboon allowed her to win just for the sake of being on her back looking up.” he chuckled. “while that may be a motive on her behalf it is not one on mine & more than once i have found myself beneath her foot. eunsook lee was the only person in this kingdom i could entrust your care to. the only one who would keep your secrets & mine & be able to protect you if harm came.”  
  
“thank you.”  
  
“i told you before: do not thank me.” taemin nodded silently as master & slave each watched the other.  
  
“what will you do with me now?”  
  
“what does one do with a prince without a crown?” taemin bristled.  
  
“i am a slave. i fled the guards in the field, i carry the mark on my wrist, & i have lain naked in your bed beneath you.” he caught the flinch across minho’s brow & pressed forward. “have accepted me as your slave & as such you have, by your own words, a responsibility to me. i have no expectations from you except the same care i have received since i arrived. i will lie in your bed & please you with my body. you are my master & i will serve you.”  
  
“would you really choose to stay with me?”  
  
“yes.” taemin’s response was quick, unhesitating.  
  
“why?”  
  
“because you have kept me safe. & you have never lied to me.”  
  
“we have barely spoken.”  
  
“yes. but we have spoken. & you have never lied to me.”  
  
“nor did i treat you well.” another flicker. only this time it was guilt.  
  
“you have never raised a hand to me,” taemin replied in confusion.  
  
“nor did i ask permission.”  
  
“for what?”  
  
“for anything, taemin.” he was still watching minho confused.  
  
“i do not understand.”  
  
“did you take jinki the first night you were given him without a word spoken between you?”  
  
“no.”  
  
“yet i took you.” realization crept through taemin’s mind & he suddenly understood.  
  
“i came of my own free will. the choice was mine & i made it willingly.”  
  
“but i had no certainty of that.”  
  
“yes you did. you would not have had me otherwise.”  
  
“you believe that?”  
  
“yes.”  
  
“how can you be so sure?”  
  
“i initiated our first time together. you said that i was ‘bold’.”  
  
“yes.” minho still did not seem convinced. “you assume i knew you to act without constraint.”  
  
“you asked me to stay in your bed. long after you had had me. there was no reason for it not to be a command. yet you asked me & you told me that i was safe to decline. you have always protected me.” he took a step forward, a short one, a slice into the chasm between their feet. “if you had not shown interest in me the prince would have known & there is no telling what would have become of me. if you think you require my forgiveness you have it but i do not believe you have committed any transgression.”  
  
“where do we go from here?”  
  
“nowhere. we remain.”  
  
“that’s what princess junghee said as well.” taemin’s eyes widened in surprise.  
  
“what?”  
  
“she seems to think you should remain in my care.”  
  
“she knows? but her brother...”  
  
“i could not keep a prince in my bed without notifying the princess. it is not well-known that the king is ill & will not see another anniversary of his birth. the future queen should know that she can trust the commander of her guards.”  
  
“& she...agrees?”  
  
“as long as your life remains as it has been, yes.”  
  
“oh.”  
  
“i do not.”  
  
“what do you mean?”  
  
“our relationship cannot continue.” taemin pressed his fingers into his palms & grit his teeth.  
  
“why are you so adamant to make me leave?”  
  
“that is not what i have said.”  
  
“then what?”  
  
“i cannot continue to be master to a slave who is proficient enough with a blade to cut a man down at six paces but can so easily be taken by a simple staff. you must learn to fight.” taemin narrowed his eyes as he watched the faintest twitch of a smile on minho’s lips. he was too worn now to hope for more.  
  
“then...you will let me stay?”  
  
“yes.”  
  
“good.” he began to speak words of thanks again, held on his tongue by the recollection of minho’s repudiation. eunsook would be pleased, he thought. his own lips twitched as he brazenly said, “i would miss eunsook too much if i were sent away.” to his relief minho burst out laughing & he couldn’t help but smile himself.  
  
~  
  
the mid-autumn sun burned against taemin’s naked back & a bead of sweat dripped into his eye as he ducked & turned, his staff tucked beneath an arm & then swung at his opponent. his cropped hair was matted against his scalp & he itched to scratch the dampness at his neck. the thought distracted him too long & a puff of air blew through his lips as he was struck & knocked to his knees, a slam against his back dropping him face-first into the dirt.  
  
“what was it this time?” taemin grimaced at the amusement in minho’s voice.  
  
“my neck itches, my lord.”  
  
“then by all means scratch it.” he glared at the dirt as he stood, keeping his back to the warrior as he quickly rubbed his fingers over the offending skin. “better?”  
  
“yes, my lord.”  
  
“hmm.” he turned to find minho watching him with a look he had become familiar with. his master stood in tight trousers with no shirt, his hair pulled away in a small top knot & his feet in heavy boots. his dusky skin glowed with exertion & his cheeks were tinged pink. taemin wore identical attire though his hair now was too short to be bound. he propped up his staff & leaned on it, smiling sweetly at his master as he nonchalantly slipped a thumb in his waistband, assuming the stance of a man at ease.  
  
minho’s eyes narrowed & he uttered a curse as he stepped forward. taemin dropped his staff & slipped his hands over minho’s waist as his face was caught in his master’s hands & their lips pressed together, opening hungrily to taste one another. he wondered why minho attempted to train him at all when eunsook was doing a much better job at keeping both taemin & herself focused on the task at hand. whenever it was master & slave alone in the yard it ended with breathy moans & roaming hands. they were secluded enough that minho could take him there if he so desired though taemin had not yet convinced him it was acceptable.  
  
within minutes he was face down on the mattress, the scent of oil in the air & the sound of skin slipping against skin filled the room. his hands were at his ass spreading himself open for his master while minho’s hands braced on the bed by his sides, his naked chest pressed against his back. he groaned into the divots, knowing that their pattern was imprinting on his face even as his master took him: his entire body was being claimed.  
  
he cried out when minho moved faster, deeper, pushing in as far as taemin’s body would take him. he whimpered when he was suddenly left barren & gasped when he was thrown to his back & abruptly filled again, his back shuddering against the textured blanket beneath him. minho leaned down to suck taemin’s lips between his own & he willing sacrificed his tongue to his master’s mouth. he held the other’s jaw beneath his fingers as he felt himself devoured, pulling away only when his back arched & he was forced to gasp for air. his arms fell to his side & nearly cried out as his cock was taken into minho’s warm & steady hand. his body shivered with sensations & he murmured “minho” as he stroked up & down the arm still by his side. he came with a cry & scrape of his nails against minho’s hand, barely catching his breath as he watched minho’s face as he came as well.  
  
taemin watched as he moved away, seating himself up against the headboard & beckoning to taemin with the crook of his finger. he climbed into minho’s lap, his master’s calloused palms running over his back & chest, navel & sides, skin glistening. he moved up & down, little swivels of his hips, his arms around minho’s neck, his collarbones level with minho’s mouth to be sucked & nibbled at. minho thrust up hard & taemin tangled his fingers into the curls before him in surprise. he held on tight as the other moved quicker & it was not long before he was again whispering his master’s name.


End file.
